


The Gauntlet Track

by Cyada



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Genre: Bad Puns, Character Development, Character Turned Into a Ghost, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Researched Steam Trains, Steam & Magic, Wind Waker Ganondorf, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-18
Updated: 2016-02-18
Packaged: 2018-05-15 23:56:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 32,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5805337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cyada/pseuds/Cyada
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Decades after Spirit Tracks. Young train engineer Zelda stumbles upon a ghost of an enigmatic man called Ganondorf and strikes up an unlikely acquaintance with him, much to the dismay of her work partner Ildefonzo. Meanwhile, the great evil sealed under the land threatens to break its shackles. Now the three have to work together to face the oncoming storm - and their own dark secrets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what made me write a fic with accurate trains for a game that doesn't even believe in tenders, but here you go. 
> 
> Inspired by a few awful train puns, frustration after reading Raising Steam (ie. 'why is this only politics and not a character-driven adventure sprinkled with fun train trivia that I expected from the series, oh no now I want to write it'), and the only other similar ST fic I know of - http://silverbellsabove.deviantart.com/art/The-Empty-Station-157174888 .
> 
> The Flying Hylian is, of course, a pun on both the Flying Dutchman (the ghost ship) and the Flying Scotsman (the train).

Cover by the ever amazing [StudioRat](http://studiorat.tumblr.com) [(bigger version)](http://40.media.tumblr.com/b50b0d1dc719ec20baabcb65c3e1f58a/tumblr_o2k8pua08M1uh32e9o1_1280.png)

Please be sure to check out their art!

 

Accidents never happen alone, the railwaymen say; they come in sets of three. Whenever a train crashes, or a brake runs out of air, or a boiler bursts, the bad luck is bound to return twice more, and often – even worse.

Right now, however, Zelda couldn't imagine her situation any worse. Sure, the train was still in one piece – but only thanks to the emergency system that had kicked in, warning them to extinguish the firebox and effectively shut the Flying Hylian down in the middle of the way from Papuchia to Aboda. Zelda could only pull the rised cap with a dove emblem lower on her short messy hair, opting to look at the sad remnants of their fire to avoid the glare of her assistant/mentor/fireman.

“I swear,” he said, “that you're going to blow us up one day. How on Hyrule could you not see the water gauge's getting low?!”

“I thought I had enough,” she murmured.

“Well, yeah – but that's where the problem is! You _always_ think you have enough, and then wonder why you run out of steam! You wait until last seconds to do something! You... you don't even check if you have enough sugar before making tea! For all the Spirits of Good, Zelda, you're an engineer, you have to watch out for details!”

“I'm not an engineer yet, Ildefonzo!”

Ildefonzo exhaled heavily. “You are! Just because you're still in the trial period, it doesn't mean you can goof off! You passed the first exam and that's the only thing that counts!...” He turned to the firebox with a frown. “But honestly, almost having the first accident a week after the exam has to be some kind of a record...”

“I'm pretty sure my dad holds it,” she dared, “he derailed his train _an hour_ after passing his first exam.”

“That doesn't count! The Spirit Tracks vanished under him. It wasn't the train that derailed, but the rails that detrained-- disappeared, I mean.” Ildefonzo sighed, finally losing the angry bellow in his tone. “Alright, I guess everyone has to make their first serious mistake eventually. Nobody's hurt, the train's fine...” He tapped a finger against his chin in thought. “You know what? The Central Express is going to be nearby soon. I'll run to the telegraph station and request they give us a pull. You go check if the cars are fine. Oh, and since we're close to the bridge, go to Slimy Linebeck's place and buy us something for lunch. I'm starving.”

In an instant Zelda saluted, grabbed her engineer bag and climbed down from the cab. She preferred not to try Ildefonzo's patience any longer. Not that he was particularly quick to fly into anger. In comparison to his father, the Yelling Terror Alfonzo that some engineers and castle guards still lived in constant fear of disappointing, he seemed an ocean of calm and patience. Maybe it had something to do with him being only twenty five and still remembering his days as a fledgling railwayman; he was barely a decade older than Zelda.

Even the subtropical seaside seemed cool in comparison with the heated cab, and breathing the fresh air in helped Zelda's head clear a little and focus on inspecting their cars. It didn't take long, as there were only two of them - beginners were not allowed to drive bigger consists – and both held only air after being relieved of their load in Papuchia. Once Zelda was sure both their cars were in a good shape, she ventured along the tracks towards the big bridge. By the sea rose a shape of Linebeck's Trading Company, aka Linebeck and Son, a title held to that day by three sets of a Linebeck and a son, all of which sharing the same love for business. Its house lay in the middle of a scattering of shining train parts too big to display inside. Zelda had to slip between a wall and a tender to get to the entrance.

Linebeck the Fourth, a young man with weaselish face and a suprisingly decent moustache, was more than helpful in providing her with two portions of Lunchineer Super (Now With More Rice!), quickly offering additional condiments (5 rupees), then diverting her attention to a set of silver earrings (200 rupees) followed by a sleek red engine in the catalogue (more rupees than an average engineer saw in a year).

“No, no, mister Linebeck, I'll just take the lunch,” she said quickly.

“Ha! Fine, but you have no idea what great occasion you ignore, miss!” He passed her two little bags with lunch. “By the way, wasn't it you who asked me about these kerosene-effective headlights?”

“You have them already? Can I see them?”

“Oh, of course! Please come after me.” He led her outside, holding the door in a gentlemanly fashion (or rather, in a fashion of someone who didn't want to be stolen from by getting locked out of their own shop). “By the way,” he said closing the door with a padlock, squinting in the strong ocean breeze, “you're coming back from Papuchia, right? Did any miniblin pirates bother you on the way here?”

“No, why?”

“They usually try and steal my wares every two or three days, but now's the second week they didn't show up. Not that I mind that. I tell you, the little bastards come out of nowhere. Now where did I... ah, here they are! Just what you asked for – why, I'd say they are the best of their kind! - just look at the design, the chrome colour, it's the single best metal out there, and the glass...”

But Zelda didn't listen to his ramblings anymore. Something else caught her attention: a shape on the beach far away from them that she could swear hadn't been there before. It was big, black and orange, but it was hard to discern any more details. “Mister Linebeck, what is that?”

“...you'd have to be crazy to let something like this- erm, what is what?”

“That thing there.”

Linebeck craned his neck to look after her pointed finger. “Huh? The... sea? The beach?”

“No, no, the big black and orange thing! It's right there!”

“There's nothing there, miss.” Linebeck narrowed his eyes. “Hey, you're not trying to divert my attention to steal something, are you?”

“Wha- Of course I'm not!”

“Well, I don't see anything. Are you buying? ...No? Then scram.” He turned around to enter the shop, changed his mind and whipped back to her. “ But I just remembered, we actually have a terrific promotion on glasses, now only-”

“Are you serious?”

“You're never gonna go anywhere in life if you don't take a risk.” He blinked and disappeared inside the shop.

Zelda huffed in irritation. The dark shape stood there still. Why would Linebeck insist it wasn't there? Was it something illegal to sell? Well, now she couldn't just leave it alone, could she. She headed its way and was astounded when it became apparent what – _who_ she saw.

It was a human.

Probably.

Definitely not a Hylian; his skin was dark, his hair and beard flaming red. His giant figure drowned in long black robes, so spacious Zelda could probably hide herself in one huge sleeve if she tried. Orange patterns creeped up his arms and to his back, and on his chest and forehead shone two decorative stones that could be amber. The man didn't seem to notice her at all, staring at the ocean.

“Good morning,” she said.

No reaction. She crept closer until she was at an arm's length. “Good morning, sir!” she tried again.

Still no reaction. While being so blatantly ignored usually caused Zelda to shrug and walk away, this time something stopped her – maybe the way the man was standing there completely alone and unseen, casting a blank stare at the horizon like a family member still waiting for a dead sailor to come back from their journey. Maybe he just didn't hear her over his thoughts. Yes, that had to be it, Zelda was sure - that is, until she tried to touch his arm and her hand went right through it.

She backed off with a gasp followed by a vicious engineer curse, staring at her hand like she'd never seen it before. No, no. That couldn't happen, of course it couldn't. Just an illusion. Seeing things from the heat. This, or...

She remembered how her father told her about being able to see ghosts, an ability that once helped him and her mother in need. And now that Zelda thought about the strange man, his whole figure seemed slightly transparent, and the strong wind didn't seem to bother his clothes.

She looked up at the person's face again and almost jumped, because he'd been looking back. His eyes were intensely golden, if slightly unfocused, like he didn't even try to bother with concentrating on her.

“Um... hello?” she said. “You are... a ghost, right?” As soon as it came out of her mouth she realized how stupid it probably sounded.

The man said nothing. After a moment he turned around and started to walk away, floating an inch above the sand.

“Wait!” shouted, but it didn't carry any results. “I just want to talk! I won't hurt you or anything! My name's Zelda!”

The ghost stopped in an instant. He turned back, walked up so close Zelda had to back off a step and stared at her face with intensity that made her uncomfortable. After a long awkward moment his gaze moved, for whatever reason, to her right arm, and his brow furrowed. Slowly he lifted his own right hand, the long sleeve sliding off it, and looked at its back, as if searching for something. Soon his confused expression abruptly changed to irritation and he flicked his arm back down.

It was a weird display, but then again, it's not like Zelda knew how ghosts were supposed to behave, so she didn't comment upon that. “Okay, so...” she started instead, “you are a... spirit, I guess. And you're here because...?”

The ghost didn't answer.

“Um, fine. Too forward. Then... what's your name?”

The ghost ignored that as well, staring at her in thought.

“You're not really cooperative, are you?” Zelda muttered, resisting the urge to flinch under that stare. “Well, I don't think I can help you anyway, unless you want a ride. If you just told me what-”

A high-pitched sound of a train whistle cut her words off.

“Oh, uh, give me just a moment! I'll be back right away!” She ran to the train, careful not to drop her bag or the lunches, which she had forgotten even existed. Ildefonzo had been leaning out of the cab with an impatient expression.

“What took you so long?” he chastised as Zelda climbed inside and passed him one of the meals. “Oh, thanks. Did my eyes deceive me, or were you really just standing there on the beach by yourself for a few minutes? ...honestly, does Linebeck need to add this little green stuff to everything, it's like he thinks it's fancy...”

“I met a ghost.”

Ildefonzo looked up from the lunch he'd been poking with a fork. “What.”

“A ghost.” Seeing the expression of his partner she added, “I know, it's pretty hard to believe, but I definitely saw him, and I think he understood what I was saying! Look, he's there!” She practically pushed Ildefonzo to look outside.

“I don't see anything.”

“Oh, right... I guess you can't see ghosts.” Looking as well, she discovered the ghost had moved. She didn't manage to spot him until she looked away from the beach and caught a glimpse of black material disappearing into one of their wagons. “Uh... Ildefonzo? He just went inside the second car. I... I think he wants a ride.”

Ildefonzo looked at her long, the stern effect somewhat ruined by the fact he was chewing on lunch. “Okay,” he started slowly, “listen, I believe you, but that's only because I was working under your father for a while and he was talking about seeing spirits too. But seriously, Zelda? You see a ghost and immediately let it on our train? What if it's a demon?!”

“I didn't 'let him on', he invited himself! And he doesn't feel like a demon. I mean, they should have horns and tails and stuff, right? He doesn't look anything like what I'd expect from one.”

“So how _does_ he look like, then?”

“Well, he's really huge, like seven feet or even more, even taller than you, wears these long black robes with orange patterns, he has dark skin and red hair, and his eyes are like – I don't know what they are like, but they're... memorable.” Now that she put it that way, it did sound pretty demonic, but instead of pointing this out Ildefonzo only furrowed his brow in thought.

“That's weird. I have a feeling I've seen someone like that before, but where? I don't remember. I must've been just a kid. Anyway.” He closed the lunch bag and put it away. “I see Mr. Rodd is already close.” He ventured outside, taking off his cap and waving with it.

Mr. Rodd was one of the engineers of the Castle's roundhouse and, like many of them, held a title in the Castle Guard. He was mostly occupied with the former job, often coursing to the southern parts of the country. Right then he was waving to them from the cab of his engine, Central Express, which he backed off to them cars first so it could pull the Flying Hylian.

“Hey, Ildefonzo!” he bellowed jumping out of the cab. “What's the problem? Hit something on the way?”

“The fusible plugs melted. We have to go back to Aboda to replace them.”

“What?” Mr. Rodd brought an exaggerated look of shock on his face. “Did you seriously bring me here just because of that? The train can ride perfectly fine without them, you know!”

“It's against the rules.” Ildefonzo crossed his arms. “And I'm not going to risk an explosion, especially not with my apprentice on board.”

Mr. Rodd seemed to only now notice Zelda. He gave her a side-eye. “Right, right. Hey, apprentice, make yourself useful. Go and check the load and cars before we depart. Make sure nothing disconnected, if it did, buckle the rubbers. What are you looking at, go!”

Zelda grumbled under her breath that she'd already done that just minutes ago, but did what she was told. Mr. Rodd was a higher-status engineer – a very vain at that - and not listening to him could have consequences. Zelda checked the cars thouroughly, and when she was done, she headed back to where the two men talked while peforming the lash-up.

She didn't expect to hear them talk about her.

“...that Zelda. I don't know what you expected,” said Mr. Rodd, lifting the heavy coupling pin. “You know what people say back in the roundhouse, right? That the Royal Family bought the examinators? I mean, look! She's already almost blow you up! You're too soft for her! If one of my apprentices pulled off something like that, I'd make him work the shovel for the rest of his life! Eh, but I guess she'd threaten you with royal court, wouldn't she? A little spoiled girl. Let's hope she gets bored and quits soon.”

“Are insulting my choice of students, sir?” Ildefonzo grumbled.

“Oh, no, no, I'm not insulting anyone! It's just hard to understand. With your background, you could take anyone else, but don't even try! For Spirits' sake, your father trained the Hero of Steam himself, and yet you stick with the girl! I bet that if he wasn't abroad discussing the pool agreements, he'd make you ditch her before the day is done! Don't you feel like you deserve better, boy? Have some ambitions!”

Ildefonzo said nothing to that.

The Flying Hylian's front was now safely attached to the Central Express's last car, ready to be pulled. It looked rather unusual, with the hauler being quite a smaller engine than the one hauled, but the locomotives hid surprising potential. They embarked their trains and started the chug through the seaside fields.

Zelda caught Ildefonzo looking at her with worry. She knew why, of course; she was pretty aware of her cheeks burning.

“You heard, didn't you?” Ildefonzo sighed. “Hey, know what you can do? Learn and become so good that you can drive any train all by yourself, and nobody will ever think twice of whether you're suited for the job. I think you are. Just... try to be more careful.”

Zelda smiled sheepishly. “Thanks. I will.”

The Central Express whistled in alarm.

“Watch out!” Mr. Rodd yelled from his cab, barely audible from the distance. “We have bulblins on eleven! Prepare your cannon!”

Ildefonzo cursed and fell back to the tender, which next to their fuel and water housed a small cannon used mostly to break obstacles on the tracks. They awaited anxiously for the signal to attack. It didn't come.

The bulblins were there, even five of them, but they didn't attempt to charge. They just held at a safe distance, staring at the train in bewilderment. The bulbos shifted and snorted underneath them. Zelda and Ildefonzo watched as they fell behind and disappeared from sight.

“I've never seen them in these parts,” Zelda said eventually.

“I have. But they were never so... _still_.”

“Maybe they're just surprised because we're so delayed?”

“Maybe,” Ildefonzo admitted, but furrowed his brow.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Back in Aboda, after they uncoupled the engines and sent Mr. Rodd on his merry way back to whatever business he was up to, Zelda made an excuse that she wanted to check the wagons herself just for good measure. By the second car she made sure to stop and rap her knuckles against it. “Hey, uh, ghost guy?” she called. “It's the end of the tracks. You may want to come out now.”

Silence. Zelda reasoned that the spirit had probably jumped out somewhere on the way when they weren't looking. Pehaps boarded another train. Wonder where he was going?

“Alright, Zelda, let's tie her up,” Ildefonzo interrupted her thoughts.

They carefully drove the Flying Hylian into the train hall, which wasn't big enough to warrant this name, but “shack” didn't sound nearly as good. The whole process of settling down for the day had been already so ingrained in Zelda's mind that before she could blink the cars were disconnected, the engine thouroughly checked and everything accounted for.

Well, not everything. They still had to take care of the near-accident's follow-ups, like replacing the fusible plugs, a long procedure involving completely draining the boiler. That was, according to Ildefonzo, a great opportunity to hit two birds with one stone by doing the biweekly washout a day earlier than usual. During the next long minutes they hosed the water out, removed and marked the washout plugs and mudhole doors, which Ildefonzo then took with him to the adjacent room to inspect and clean. Once the door closed after him Zelda was left alone to do the more undignified part of cleaning the boiler, but, she supposed, it was only fair; the person who put the entire thing in danger should be the one that cared for it afterwards. A fitting consequence.

She pulled on water-resistant boots, jacket, and long gloves, made sure the water pressure was set in the hose and turned around to the engine. And almost collided with a heavy, red-clothed chest that wasn't there a second before. She looked up and met an impenetrable golden gaze.

“ _Oh_ ,” she gasped, but quickly gathered herself. “Well, you... you finally got out. Hope the journey was nice. Now do you mind?” She gestured with the hose towards the locomotive. “I want to clean the boiler.”

The ghost didn't move and Zelda was starting to wonder if she could just walk through him if need be, but after just a few more seconds he stepped aside. His stare was still intense on her back as she climbed the locomotive and inserted the hose into one of the washout plugs. At least being so high meant it was now her who towered over the ghost. Good Spirits, he almost reached the top of the boiler! Wondering just where the hell did they make humans so huge, Zelda turned the valve on the hose. Pressurized water blasted against the boiler wall, sloshing down and escaping down the mudholes at the bottom, producing a puddle brown from the carried sediment. She noticed the ghost quickly stepped away from the water, as if fearing for the safety of his shoes and robes, even if it would probably just flow through him without a mark. Old habits died hard, she supposed.

After a while she moved the hose into another washout hole, remembered how many of them she still had to use, and sighed heavily. If only she had someone to talk to during all of this...

“You know what, mister,” she started in a conversational tone, “I didn't quite catch your name. What were you called again?” She glanced at the ghost, but he didn't move, his expression hard to read. “I'm starting to think you can't talk. Not that anything's wrong with that, mind you, but I kinda hoped...”

“My name is Ganondorf.”

Zelda snapped her head to him in surprise. The voice sounded low and rumbling and incredibly fitting for this mountain of a man, but it was still weird to hear him actually talk.

“Nice to meet you, Ganondorf. I'm Zelda. I'd shake your hand, but my own is rather dirty right now – and I guess it'd still pass through you.”

“Your name is one with a long tradition,” Ganondorf said.

“Well... yeah.” Zelda suddenly felt much less at ease with this conversation. “That's kinda obvious for everyone from around here... wait, _are_ you even from around here? You sure don't look like it. No offense.”

“Tell me, where is your mother?”

Zelda froze in the middle of reaching for a copper wire rod. “...why are you asking?”

“Let's say... I am in need of her help.”

“Well, then you're quite out of luck, are you.” She grabbed the rod and shoved it into the washout hole stronger than it was necessary. “Then again, you're as dead as her, so it may just about work.”

“My condolences.” He said after a pause, and suddenly his voice became gentle.

Zelda sighed. “It's fine. I guess you wouldn't know if you're not from Hyrule. If you need our Queen's help, then go to my older sister. She's the one ruling right now. She doesn't have a lot of time, what's with all these locomotive pool agreements and the government formation we're in the middle of, but she could help you.” She scuttled along to the next hole. “You know, I really pity her. Stuck all alone in the Castle. I mean, she says she's just fine with it, but I don't know. And there's always the chancellor and the advisors, but she's so adamant that we listen to ourselves more than to anyone else. She always said _remember, Tetra, sometimes you just have to listen to your instincts._ ”

“Tetra?” Ganondorf repeated, suddenly interested.

“Yeah. It's my name.” Zelda scowled. “My first name. It's a long tradition to name every princess Zelda, but after a while you try to call one and five raises their heads, so now it's got delegated to the second name. You know, since the second name shows what the parents hope the kid to become. The first can be whatever. So my name's Tetra. But I prefer Zelda because I'm pretty sure I'm not a _fish_. My sister's got the better deal, her first name's Daphne.”

A split-second change flew past Ganondorf's face, too quickly for her to recognize the exact emotions behind it, but they didn't look pleasant.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Zelda waved her hand sending stray droplets in the air, “daphnias are like those little water fleas, I saw them once through that lots-of-lenses device my teacher had, but at least it _sounds_ pretty, you know? I think the first queen thought up a similar name for her son and that's why it even exists. Watch out, I'm coming down.” She climbed down to utilize the lower washout plugs. “Anyway, what's _your_ deal? Since you asked to see the Queen, I guess you aren't just looking for a ride, are you?”

Ganondorf looked at her long as if considering if she's worthy the response, but finally relaxed. “There is a little... trinket... I'm interested in. It is made of three parts, all in the shape of golden triangles.”

“Golden triangles... oh, you mean the Force Gems!”

Ganondorf's eyes glistened. “That is what its shards may be called now, yes. I don't suppose you have, perhaps... heard of who might be in their possession?”

“In possession?” Zelda scratched her head. “Uh... I don't think they're anyone's _possession_. I mean, technically everyone can make them, right?” Seeing Ganondorf's expression, she elaborated, “you know, because it takes one good deed? You make someone a favor and if they're really grateful then the Spirits of Good inspire their heart to crystallize the force of that feeling into a Force Gem. That's what you're looking for?”

“No.” Ganondorf closed his eyes, exhaling heavily. “It is not.”

“Oh. Still, maybe they could help you. I heard they're so powerful they can turn a demon into a human. Wait, or was turning a demon into a human what created really strong Force Gems? I don't remember. Dad told me they're incredibly useful, but usually vanish quickly after they do what they're supposed to, which is helping the gifted person. For dad that was restoring one of the forgotten fragments of the Spirit Tracks. They just appeared out of nowhere, the more grateful the creator was, the longer. Hey, do you think the Spirit Tracks really do run through the whole world, through all the mountains and oceans and canyons and whatnot?” She glanced at Ganondorf and realized he wasn't terribly interested in her words. “Yeah, I know. I jump between topics. That's my attention span for you.”

“It does seem rather unfortunate for someone working with heavy machines,” he commented.

Zelda rolled her eyes. “Hey, I'm not _that_ inattentive, alright? I can focus on work. And it's not like the old times when you had to constantly check every little thing or you blew yourself up. It may seem like the slightest ommitment can be fatal, but in fact there's a lot of improvement from the earlier models. We have emergency mechanisms, and the triple valve, and the air brakes and all. The trains are designed to be unstoppable.”

“And yet something has happened that made yours stop this morning.”

Zelda bit her lip, then sighed. “Alright, you got me. It's kinda embarrassing. I didn't notice the water in the boiler was running too low. It's one of the worst mistakes you can do. Back in the days it used to make for some very bad explosions, but fortunately we have the fusible plugs now. They're in the crown sheet of the firebox. If the water doesn't cover the crown, the metal in the plugs melt and allows water to fall in, and the hissing warns you so you can quickly extinguish the fire. Kind of a downer if it pops up unexpected, but you know, everything's better than the boiler exploding. You can wrestle with fire all you want, but if it gets too hard to control, you may as well dump a whole lot of water on it and call it a day. And the--”

A sudden sharp movement startled her into silence. Ganondorf had apparently tried to bang his fist against the train. It didn't, of course, make the intended sound or impact and he was now standing with his arm halfway through the cab wall. He didn't even seem to notice that; his teeth were bared in frustration and eyes glistened. Zelda didn't like this look in the slightest.

“Ganondorf?” she asked turning the hose valve shut. “What's wrong?”

He didn't answer, didn't even look at her, but withdrew his arm and floated to the side of the room away from her. Zelda analyzed her words to find what could offend him. There was something, but... “Hey, can I ask a question? You don't have to answer.”

“Ask,” he allowed after a moment.

“Have you, um... drowned?”

He cast her a long look. “Whatever gave you that idea?”

“I found you by the ocean, and yet you seem to be wary of water.”

“I suppose,” he said finally. “that you can tell I had an... unfortunate meeting with the ocean.”

“I'm sorry.” Zelda averted her sight.

“What are you sorry for?”

She blinked and looked at him again in surprise. “I... what kind of question is that? You died. I'm sorry that you did. And drowning must hurt, I mean, I'd guess when the water gets into your...” Argh, no, she should bite her tongue more often. Great going there, reminding a ghost about the unpleasantness of death.

Ganondorrf considered this for a while before turning his back to her. “Perhaps. I don't know.”

That took her off guard. “You... don't know? How can you not now if something hurts?”

“You see, Zelda,” he said in a voice barely audible, “When you have already experienced the cruelest agony the universe could ever bring you mere moments earlier... there is no amount of pain that could possibly rise over it.”

He didn't more tired than hurt, like he had mulled over the moment so many times before that it stopped fazing him. Zelda put the hose away and made a step towards him. “Ganondorf-”

“Hey, Zelda! You done with the washout?”

Startled she looked at the door. Ildefonzo had peeked into the room, wiping his hands with a cloth, apparently having finished his part.

“I...” she stumbled, “yeah, I... I'm almost done.”

“Who were you talking to?”

Zelda looked to her side again and discovered Ganondorf wasn't there anymore; in his place hovered a little ball of red light. It floated on top of the locomotive, where it puffed back into the shape of the man, now glaring at Ildefonzo with his head bowed.

“Do you remember that ghost guy I told you about?” Zelda asked feeling a little faint. “It's him.”

Ildefonzo shot her an incredulous look, but seeing her seriousness he resorted to sigh very heavily. “Great. We have a ghost stalker now. Just great. I swear that-”

He was interrupted when somebody knocked at the door. This was going to be a day of interruption, wasn't it?, Zelda thought rushing to open. A postman with a bag much too heavy for his size smiled brightly and saluted.

“Gooood morning! Engineer Zelda? I have an urgent letter for you! Very urgent indeed!” He shoved an envelope into her hand, having at least enough common sense to wait until she discarded the dirty gloves. Weird apprehension prickled on her scalp when she saw how it was addressed: it looked official, but in simple handwriting it said just “Zelda”, not “Tetra Zelda” as it should. She opened the letter.

 

_Dear Zelda,_

_Please meet me in the Tower of Spirits as soon as you can. It is of utmost importance to the safety of the whole Kingdom._

_Anjean the Sage_

 

“Are you sure this is for me?” Zelda asked the postman. “It sounds like it's for my sister in the Castle. She's the one doing important kingdom stuff.”

“I have been specifically told to give it to a young engineer, ma'am!” The postman saluted. “And to tell you that today you have permission to, let me remember that, to use the main Spirit Tracks of the Forest Realm without a planned course! Now if you excuse me, I'm off to other recipients!” He ran off.

Zelda caught a glimpse of black on the edge of her vision and realized with a start that Ganondorf had moved to read the letter over her arm. For a man that huge, he walked without the slightest sound – though to be fair, he had the advantage of floating.

“Anjean the sage,” he said. “So the sages are still around.”

“Yeah, apparently. I thought they all came back to the heavens many years ago, but it seems at least one's here now.” An idea blinked in her mind. “Hey, Ganondorf, you know what? I'm sure a sage would help you find what you're looking for. You can come with us if you want. Just, you know, not right this second. We still have to put the plugs and the doors back, fit new gaskets, change the fusible plugs, refill the boiler, warm everything up... It's gonna take a while. In the meantime you can go have a look around the village or something. Sightsee.”

His eyes narrowed. “I doubt anything in this place would be interesting enough to hold my attention.”

“Are you sure? We have a museum of-”

“I am sure.”

“So what are you going to do, wait right here for a few hours?” To her annoyance, Ganondorf just crossed his arms, which put a barrier made of those absurdly long sleeves between them, and proceeded to somehow brace his back against the wall. “Fine, be that way.” Zelda turned to Ildefonzo and was met with a stare. “What?”

“You... you don't even know how weird that looks. I get that you're talking to the ghost guy, but it still freaks me out. Let's hope he goes away soon,” he added much quieter.

Unfortunately for Ildefonzo, that didn't seem to be the case. Ganondorf stuck around for the entirety of the preparations, a constant presence observing them from the corner. Whenever Zelda glanced his way, he had always been staring back. It gave her goosebumps.

Finally they moved the Flying Hylian to the station and were ready to start the journey through the fields of Hyrule. Zelda announced that to Ganondorf.

“But, uh,” she added, “now that I think about it, we're taking just the locomotive so it's faster. We don't have any cars this time, and I don't think you'd fit in the cab with us, so-” her voice cut off when Ganondorf once again turned into a little red light and flew straight into the cab, hovering close by. “Or you can do that too, I guess. Just don't fly in my face when I'm driving.”

She and Ildefonzo saluted the empty platform in a traditional, if slightly nonsensical gesture, and they departed.

 


	3. Chapter 3

The road treated them lightly: sunny weather, no unexpected obstacles, no close passings with other trains. Even the everpresent moinks seemed more manageable than usual. For the first time in her life Zelda didn't need to blow the whistle to scare them away; they already kept at a respectable distance from the tracks, raising their snouts towards the cab of the Flying Hylian like they sniffed something interesting. Weird, but at least they weren't frolicking on the rails like they always used to. Maybe they had finally realized what danger it held, both for them and for the train; there had never been a case of hitting a moink that didn't result in derailment.

Zelda had seen the Tower of Spirits before, of course, but she never took the time to realize just how tall it was. Twenty, or maybe even thirty stories, she wasn't sure. No station was nearby to accommodate them, but the tracks led them straight inside the building, where they stopped on a giant turntable. Zelda climbed down first, looking around in amazement. The round room was huge, with four sets of tracks leading from the turntable to four giant doors like the one they had just passed through. There were stairs up, and one door much smaller than the others that led who knows where.

“Welcome to the Tower of Spirits.”

Zelda shifted her attention to a person who she could swear hadn't been there before: a tiny woman sitting in a kind of a wheeled pod. While she looked very old, her hair was pulled up in a frivolous topknot, and a kind smile softened her wrinkles.

“My name is Anjean,” she said. “I am one of the Lokomo sages and a guardian of this Tower. I welcome you, Zelda of the Royal Family, and you, Ildefonzo – yes, I know your name, young man, you may close your mouth. And...” she looked at the red light hovering conspiciously in mid-air. “...who are you, my friend? Please don't be shy.”

The light unwound into the giant shape of Ganondorf. Anjean looked only mildly surprised by this – but then she raised her sight to his face and gasped. “You...” she breathed, her hand flying to her chest, “no... your eyes...”

They stared at each other for a good ten seconds – one glaring, the other in shock - before Anjean finally looked away and cleared her throat. “Ehm! Yes. Excuse me, Zelda, Ildefonzo, but I wish to speak with your companion first. Only the two of us. Please wait here.” She opened the smallest door and wheeled inside. On the inviting wave of her hand Ganondorf followed, his expression not in the slightest friendly. The door closed with a ching! of a lock.

Several minutes passed. Then several more. Ildefonzo relegated to rest sitting against the wall while Zelda alternatively paced around and tapped her feet with her arms crossed.

“Wasn't it supposed to be urgent?” she wondered. “What happened to the 'of utmost importance' thing?”

“Maybe they're talking about something even more important.” Ildefonzo shrugged.

More important? Well, now Zelda was just intrigued. Besides, after all that ghost stuff she felt like she deserved an explanation. She sneaked towards the door and planted herself in a strategic place to hear what was going inside.

“...then,” Anjean said, “shouldn't it be obvious what happened?”

A long moment of silence. “I know what you want me to say and I will not say it.”

“Oh? Why would you think I want you to say anything in particular? I'll tell you this: what you thought about now, I hadn't led you to. You realized it yourself. Doesn't that mean you know it's true?”

“Do not try your pitiful mind games with me, sage.”

“Hey, Zelda,” Ildefonzo's voice rose above the others, “are you sure it's a good idea? This sage lady doesn't look like she takes eavesdropping lightly.”

“Oh shush, 'Fonzo! I can't hear what they're talking about!” She turned her attention back to the door in time to hear,

“...then go. I will not stop you. I only wish you'd realize your efforts are futile.”

Zelda fell back when she heard the door's lock ching. It didn't even have the chance to fully open before Ganondorf floated through it, his figure hunched and taut, teeth bared in frustration. He barely threw a glare toward stupified Zelda before he turned into the red sprite and shot right through the giant door west.

Anjean appeared, her expression that of sad contemplation, but as soon as she caught Zelda looking she smiled to her. “Forgive me for taking my time with him,” she said. “Now as to why I have summoned you here. It is about a certain threat that may reemerge soon... and how to stop said threat. As you probably heard, the Demon King Malladus was defeated many years ago. He wasn't destroyed completely, though; a weak shade of him survived. The Spirit Tracks form a seal that keeps him from reemerging from the underground prison. If they would ever to disappear, the great evil could be freed to wreak havoc in Hyrule once again. Right now all the tracks are still intact, and so is the key binding them: the Tower of Spirits. However... faint traces of evil are spreading throughout the land. I don't know what else may have caused it but the seal weakening. We have to stop it. That's why I have summoned you here: I'm afraid you'll have to climb the Tower of Spirits and strengthen the seal.”

“Wait, that's all?” Zelda asked. “So what are we waiting for? Let's go right now!”

“Hold your trains, my dear. It's not that easy. Many years ago, before leaving this world, I have sealed shut the door to the Tower's floors. I didn't expect they would have to be used so soon. The door would open again after a certain number of years have passed, under the first full moon after that, and only after midnight. That night just happens to be this Wednesday – or very early Thursday, if you want to be specific. We have to hold on until then. We can only hope the seal won't break before that.”

“This Wednesday... today's Monday. So that's just a few days, I'm sure everything will be fine. Do we need something else?”

“Yes. We need me, a sage, to prepare the ritual. We need you, Zelda, the youngest heir of the royal blood, to climb the Tower and place a spell on the altar of the Demon King. The road up won't be easy, though... it is long and tricky, and the Phantom guardians of the Tower grow restless. We need someone to defeat them, take over their bodies and clear your way – and that someone could only be one of the wandering spirit. They are ghosts that still grieve or regret, the ones stuck in between here and afterlife because they could never fulfill the most important goals of their lives. Since this Kingdom is at peace, and it takes a certain kind of a person to become a wandering spirit, they are usually hard to come across. Or at least, they are _supposed_ to be. I'm not sure how, but you have found one already.” She looked at her seriously. “Destiny works in weird ways.”

“Wait, so you mean...” Zelda looked towards the door leading west. “Ganondorf is...? But what could he regret?”

“Did you or didn't you eavesdrop?”

Zelda flushed with embarassment. “I... I must have missed that part.”

“Hm.” Anjean closed her eyes in thought. “Maybe it's better you don't know. Just believe me when I say this... he will not hurt you.”

“Yeah, and what kind of 'won't hurt you' are we speaking of?” Ildefonzo piped in for the first time in the conversation. “Is it because he's friendly or because his hands would pass through our throats?”

“My, what accusations you make.” Anjean smiled with one eye closed, which looked like a mischievious blink that refused to give up. “I understand your worry, but I believe that you are safe in his presence. Even if you don't trust him, please withstand just these few days. Treat it like driving a gauntlet track: before you all can go in your own directions, the rails you traverse must briefly converge in order to get you through a narrow passage. I am sure Ganondorf understands that as well. However...” Seriousness returned to her face. “There is another issue. As a lost spirit, he may feel out of place, seek out something he doesn't even know about the existence of, maybe even leave and not return if he deems your help unnecessary. That would be the worst turn of events. Remember we absolutely need him to strengthen the seal. Therefore I'd much prefer if you kept a close eye on him until then. Don't let him wander too far.”

“But – he just did!” Zelda pointed at the open door. “He flew away before I could do a thing!”

“Do not fear. I can feel his energy. Right now he's almost to the Castle, probably to check if maybe it's your sister who holds what he's looking for, even after I have told him why he will not find it... the stubborn fool.” She sighed. “I must ask you to find him. It shouldn't be bothersome, since you would have to go to the Castle anyway. I have sent there a request to consider your train superior in the entire Forest Realm for the next few days, but you will need to speak the details in person with the management. Hmm.” She closed her eyes. “No, I think that's everything. Thank you for listening.” She snapped her fingers and the Flying Hylian gave a whistle by herself. “Now go. The Spirit Tracks will guide you.”

“Thank you, Anjean!” Zelda climbed into the cab after Ildefonzo.

“May we meet again at Wednesday,” Anjean shouted through the noise of the train. “Remember the door opens at midnight, so you don't have to be in a hurry. Even if you leave Aboda at eight in the evening, you should have more than enough time to come here! Goodbye!”

The Flying Hylian rolled out through one of the gates and into the afternoon light.

“So,” Ildefonzo started, “are we seriously going to stop a Demon King? Wouldn't that be a little hard?”

“Hey, mom and dad did it once, right? I'm sure Anjean knows what she's doing. Ganondorf will help us too.”

Ildefonzo made a face suggesting he doubted that last sentence, but didn't want to argue.

The Castle was just a mile away fom the Tower, and so they didn't even manage to pick up speed before they had to stop again, on the side track in front of the Great Roundhouse. First place they headed was to the Company of Royal Engineers, a magnificent building next to it. The man in charge of the relevant office looked at them strangely when they asked about issuing superiority granted by a Lokomo sage. After getting through at least three different rulebook he had to admit the law had never been technically abandoned, which he said in a tone suggesting he would try his best to make it very abandoned very soon.

Ildefonzo stayed behind with the paperwork, and Zelda was free to try and find Ganondorf. It wasn't a long search. He had been standing in the middle of the square in front of the Castle having what seemed like an intense staring contest with one of the lion statues there.

“Hey, Ganondorf!” She waited until he acknowledged her existence with a glance. “We're coming back to Aboda. I'm not sure if Anjean told you, but you should stick with us at least for a few days more. Let's go.”

She turned to leave, and noticed with relief that Ganondorf followed her at a leisure pace. For a second she'd been worried he wouldn't listen. Only once did he look back at the stone lion, or maybe the Castle itself, and mumbled something intelligible under his breath, shaking his head.

Ghosts were certainly weird.

The journey back to Aboda went much quicker now that they didn't have to wait on sidetracks to let other trains pass by; now they were the ones passing by. She could get used to it.

In the evening, when the Flying Hylian had been safely tied up in the Aboda's train hall, Zelda asked Ganondorf if he would prefer to find a better place to spend the night. But just like before he only crossed his arms, apparently intending on waiting through the night by the engine just in case they tried to leave without him. Zelda could only roll her eyes at him.

 

As usual, she was sleeping in Ildefonzo's guest room on one of the two beds there. Ildefonzo took the other one. He could sleep in his parents' room, seeing as they were both abroad (his mother had nagged his father for exotic vacation because _we're not getting any younger, Al_ so many times that he agreed to take her with him on an otherwise boring business trip), but he had decided he didn't want to ruin his hard matress tolerance. He tried to offer the place to Zelda instead, but she reasoned it was only fair if she slept on a simple bed as well.

As Zelda prepared for sleep, a memory stirred in her mind, of when she had been younger and couldn't imagine ever being able to withstand Aboda's heat, the cidadas' cries outside, or even the lack of silken pillows. But after almost three years of similar life even Ildefonzo's snoring felt so familiar that she fell asleep instantly.

Only once, in the middle of the night, she woke up with a weird feeling that someone was sitting on the bed watching her sleep, but when she looked there was no one.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact 1: All of the puns in this chapter are legit real-world terms. Yes, all of them.
> 
> Fun fact 2: Papuchia was first put in this fic because I wanted to make a remark about that one lady whose description of an ideal husband sounds suspiciously like Ganondorf, but the joke ultimately refused to cooperate.

In a great tradition of every train engineer everywhere, both Zelda and Ildefonzo woke up long before sunrise to prepare the Flying Hylian for the morning ride. Something as trivial as fulfilling destiny couldn't possibly eclipse the importance of their job - at least that's what the management thought, and what they thought always quickly became common sense on the tracks. Besides, Ildefonzo had already agreed to take a transport of wood to Papuchia.

The first thing Zelda noticed after entering the train hall was that Ganondorf still stood there with crossed arms just like she had left him in the evening. As far as she knew, he'd really been sitting there all night.

“The sun has not risen yet,” he pointed out before she could even open her mouth. “You have told me you leave at eight.”

“Ye-eeeah,” she yawned. “And the engine is not warmed up, the parts not oiled, the air's not charged, the cars and the load not ready, and we haven't even eaten proper breakfast yet. Any more questions?”

Apparently Ganondorf didn't have any, because from that moment on he didn't speak a word more to her, though maybe it had something to do with Ildefonzo entering the hall. Even when they had to leave he kept silent, simply turning into a red sprite and entering the cab.

Maybe he was already bored with them, Zelda thought as the Flying Hylian rolled out of Aboda steadily gaining speed. Maybe he would just hover around and keep silent for a few days, and then simply go away when they're done with the Tower of Spirits. For some reason that thought didn't lie well with her.

“How does the engine work?”

Zelda blinked and looked around, but she didn't spot the giant figure of Ganondorf. Only the red ball of light hovered by her arm.

“You can talk in that form too?” she asked. To her left Ildefonzo mouthed an 'oh, _great_ '.

“Obviously. How does the engine work?”

“It's complicated. I can explain it, but it would take quite a while.”

“I have time.”

“Well then. Come closer so I don't have to yell. Most of the engine is the firebox and the boiler that holds water. You saw a bit of what it all looks like inside yesterday when we changed the fusible plugs. What we want to do is heat the water to produce steam...”

Long minutes passed. From the basics of how the steam is created and travels through the pipes she moved on to more in-depth explanations. Ganondorf turned out to be a good listener, taking in what she said without interrupting and asking relevant question. Apparently he'd never heard of the inner workings of a steam train and Zelda was more than happy to teach him, especially since just a few days had passed from the engineer exam and her vast memorized knowledge hadn't yet had a chance to dissipate. Even Ildefonzo tolerated her tirade surprisingly well. She had no doubt he listened intently in case he had to correct her.

And so the Flying Hylian approached a sharp curve signaling the one-third of the way between Aboda and Papuchia, and Zelda was still explaining, having moved on to the air brake system.

“...and when you pull the lever to the “apply” position, the air escapes from the brake pipe. It reduces the pressure there, the triple valve senses the difference between it and the auxiliary reservoir and shifts. Now the air can go from the auxilliary into the brake reservoir, which causes the blocks to push against the wheels. It works really well, you just have to be careful and not fan out the brakes – that is, use them in quick succession. Then the air in the auxiliary wouldn't manage to recharge in time, the triple valve wouldn't notice the reduction in the brake pipe and you'd be as well as dead. Not that it would ever happen to us, I learned from Ildefonzo and he's a brake wizard, I tell you. I have no idea how he does the reductions so smoothly. I could almost - - _oh crap_!”

She yanked at the pull cord to sound the whistle in short sharp bursts. A person with a huge backpack that had been walking on the tracks a long distance in front of them jumped off and ran a safe distance away. He looked scared out of his mind as they rode by, but Zelda knew from experience he was going to come back and continue his trek as soon as the train vanished in the distance.

“Is he insane?” Ganondorf muttered.

“It's normal,” she said, trying to will her heart to stop its frantic beating. “I'm not sure why, but people really like walking on the tracks. It's a magnet to wanderers. Maybe when they're lost they go down the first steady road they see. I guess following the tracks you're guaranteed to find at least something better than a dead end. I'd much prefer they didn't do that close to a sharp curve, though.” She glanced at Ildefonzo and noticed he was still tense, looking at the tracks and nervously fiddling with something in his pocket. “Hey, 'Fonzo, alright?”

He nodded stiffly. “Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Good braking there. That's how you do it.”

The rest of the way continued with just one more encounter: entering Papuchia they passed a small group of young men with pictographs hung around their necks and notebooks in their hands. They chattered happily, pointing at the Flying Hylian in excitement. One of them waved. Ildefonzo sighed, put up a stiff smile and waved back.

“Who are those people?” Ganondorf asked.

“Ah, they're just gunzels. Enthusiasts. They like to hang around, make pictures and write about us in their little fan papers. Some of them even build draisins so they can travel between towns. A bit too obsessed, if you ask me, but overall they're nice people. You can count on them in need.” She watched in amusement as one particularly brave gunzel jogged after the deccelerating train, only to ask for their signatures in a notebook when they stopped on the station. He even had a collection of colorful stamps from each bigger destination. He tried to make Zelda sign under the one representing the Castle, but she forced a smile, turned the page back to Aboda and wrote her signature under Ildefonzo's.

It took them a good hour to find the client, demand the payment and wait for his people to unload the whole two cars of wood. As they worked, the birds that always swarmed over the village cawed at them from the morning sky, as if announcing the day. A few of them flew in weird, confused circles. Perhaps the wind was changing.

The Flying Hylian's dark steel always looked out of place in bright little Papuchia, but now, in the cheerful morning, Ganondorf seemed to fit even less. Salty breeze tugged at Zelda's and Ildefonzo's clothes and threatened to steal their caps, and yet Ganondorf's robes hung down unbothered. The entire time they were in the village he'd been silent, observing the sea, the birds, the distant golds of the Sand Realm to the north. Especially that last thing seemed to draw his eyes.

“Beautiful morning, isn't it?” Zelda asked moving to stand next to him.

“Hm,” was the only answer.

“Do you like the desert?”

His expression stayed undecipherable.

“Well, I think it looks nice,” Zelda continued, “even though the one time I drove through there I had enough sun for weeks. Good thing no one important lives there so we don't have to do it often. I'm pretty sure the Flying Hylian's pretty happy too that she doesn't have to overheat. You know, I was a bit worried about her after yesterday, but it seems everything works fine.” She patted the locomotive with affection. “This pig's not giving up yet. She's going to squeal a lot more.” Seeing Ganondorf's confused expression, she added, “You know, the pig? The hog? The engine. Wow, you're _really_ not from around here.”

The corner of Ganondorf's mouth twitched. “You call your train a hog?”

“Some people do. I mean, just look at her! Big and slow, you have to feed her constantly to get her to move, and you really, _really_ wouldn't want to get tackled by her. And whenever she goes, she hogs the tracks.”

Ganondorf chuckled – he actually chuckled! Up to that moment Zelda would never think he was even able to smile. Maybe he just needed time. Or a bad pun or two.

“And since I'm an engineer, I would be a hogmaster. Or a hoggineer. A grunt. The best pig-mauler in the world. A hoghead – no, wait. I think it's sowhead. At least it's not a piglet anymore.” Ganondorf chuckled some more, pleasantly stroking Zelda's ego. “Hey, and since you ride our train without paying for a ticket, you know what we should call you?... wait for it... a _dead_ head.”

Silence fell heavily among them.

“I'm sorry. That was terrible. I don't think before blurting things out sometimes. I shouldn't...”

“It was utterly despicable,” Ganondorf agreed, but the grin he presented spoke otherwise. Zelda grinned back. Maybe the next few days wouldn't be that hard to endure.

She looked at the tracks stretching far into the next Realm and sighed. “Hey, but in all seriousness, do you know what my favourite term for the engine is, Ganondorf?... Power.”

No chuckle came this time.

“I know why others call it that, of course,” Zelda continued. “Driving hundreds of tons around at high speed ought to feel powerful. But... it's something else that makes it for me, you know?” She took a few steps towards where the tracks disappeared on the horizon. “Engineering is not a clean, easy job. There are days I wish I stayed back in the Castle. I'm half-convinced my sister never touched grease or mud in her life. But... there are also days like this, when you drive from Aboda through the morning fields, so early the sky's light blue and bright around the edges, you look out of the cab and the wind from the land hits you, and you can taste the grass and forest in it. And then you realize that the tracks reach so far and you can drive anywhere you desire, and that it was your decision that made it possible, that you've chosen your own way over getting stuffed in some castle... you feel like you can achieve anything... I think that's power.”

She looked over her arm, but Ganondorf as usual wasn't there. He had moved to stand on top of the cab with his back to her, looking along the tracks.

“You have chosen your own way, you're saying?” He hmphed. “Claiming to have choice when the tracks had already been laid out millennia earlier, and you merely flail between them unable to break away... how pitiful.”

After that, Ganondorf refused to move until they had to depart. Even then, when he turned into his light form, the whole way back to Aboda he hung out idly by the tender not in the mood for any conversations. It felt especially saddening – and a bit annoying, honestly - now that Zelda had seen him relax, if just for a short moment.

Therefore, after the engine was tied up and they cleaned themselves up, Zelda in all of her wisdom of a fifteen-year-old decided it would be a good idea to try and soften his mood with a surprise. After all, they were to endure each other until the next day's night.

“I think I'll take a walk,” she said innocently. “Ganondorf, you have some time too, right?”

“Obviously.”

“Great!” she said ignoring the coolness in his voice. “Then let's go somewhere fun. 'Fonzo, you're coming?”

“Eh, fine.” He shrugged, and quieter he added, “I don't feel comfortable leaving you alone with the ghost guy.”

They locked the hall and walked south, among the palm trees and what few houses the village had. The pleasant morning had turned into a pleasant midday. The sun warmed their clothes as they moved. On the beach the neighbours' kids played a game involving chasing each other, yelling and scaring the seagulls.

“Where are we going?” Ganondorf asked floating by Zelda's side.

“You've never properly visited Aboda before, haven't you? We have time, so let's go sightsee.”

“I have told you that there is nothing of interest for me here.”

“Yeah, sure. How about we go to the Paper History Museum and you repeat that then?” She pointed at a lonely house in the south-western corner of Aboda.

Ganondorf raised his eyebrows. “This tiny village has an entire museum on the history of paper?”

“Oh, not exactly. By 'paper history' they mean 'history preservated in paper'.” She spoke briefly with a man sitting in front of the house, who was more than happy to let them through once he saw Ildefonzo. “Dad took me here once, but I can't remember a thing. He lived in this house when he was young, you know? For a roommate he had this really old guy who kept crafting depictions of legends and historical events from coloured paper. He left like a hundred years worth of them when he died. So they put all of them together...” She opened the door. “...and made the house into a museum.”

Every wall from the ceiling to the floor was covered in pictures. They stretched in colorful columns, with labels explaining a chunk of a story behind each piece. Zelda didn't even notice when Ganondorf had vanished from her side and reappeared by the first story, already busy reading. The title said, _The clash of the Hero of Steam and Princess Zelda V with the Demon King_.

“That's the last one, Zelda,” Ildefonzo pointed out when she got closer. “Shouldn't we go from the earliest works to the latest?”

“What's the difference? We still get to see every single one.” She glanced at Ganondorf. He'd been focused on the next-to-last picture of the story, in which the Hero and the Princess, both just children, faced a giant, half-abstract monster. _A battle unveiled. The Hero fought bravely with the sacred Lokomo Sword, and at long last, the Demon King Malladus had been slain and the land of Hyrule saved._

“Zelda the Fifth,” Ganondorf whispered to no one in particular, probably just reading out loud, but Zelda suddenly felt much less at ease than she wanted to be by coming here. Quickly she paced to the next story. There was a twinge of guilt in her, saying that she should have been joyful to see the picture – to stay and marvel at her mom, portrayed as an almost glowing with grace princess in a pink dress, watching from the side as the boy who would one day become her husband pointed at the beast with a sword. She decided not to think about it and focused on moving through the other stories and around the room.

At some point Ganondorf fell behind, too engrossed in reading, and at least at that Zelda could chuckle to herself. _Nothing of interest_ , sure. The man practically devoured the history and legends one after another. Ildefonzo, on the other hand, went ahead skipping the majority of the texts, having lived his whole life in Aboda and probably having seen this whole place a hundred times as a kid.

Eventually they reached the first period of the artist's creations, filled with many tales of the first Queen and the Hero of Winds: how the former sailed the never-ending oceans and ruled wisely, how the latter got his moniker after saving an archipelago from a hurricane with a magical baton controlling winds. The further they moved, the more the texts and the pictures lost their complexity – or rather, the author had not yet been experienced enough to obtain such quality of art. Zelda was busy reading a story about an hourglass filled with a time-changing sand when she was interrupted.

“Hey, Zelda?” Ildefonzo asked in a weird voice. “You told me this ghost guy is huge, has strange eyes and long black robes with orange patterns, right? ”

“Yeah, what about it?” She turned to him and was instantly struck with anxiety, because the usually stoic man now had a look of barely hidden fear on his face.

“Well...” He pointed at one of the pictures. “I think you should see something.”

In the picture, a rather shocked green-clad Hero of Winds watched as a giant shadow swept away his friend that would one day become the first Queen of Hyrule. As with the majority of sinister characters in the paper stories, the shadow was pictured as half-abstract – but it was easy to notice his size, the orange patterns, the long dark sleeves in which the little queen was bundled, and the red eyes that held no mercy. A bit of text right next to the picture said,

_Just then, a huge, ominous king appeared! He carried Princess Zelda away..._

There was more written below, but suddenly with he corner of her eye Zelda caught a hint of transparent black and completely lost her train of thought.

Ganondorf was standing right behind her.

 


	5. Chapter 5

It took Zelda all of her willpower and courage to convince her body to turn around.

Ganondorf hadn't been looking at her, but at the story. Some weird melancholy, perhaps even sadness appeared on his face, but as he read, his expression changed; forehead wrinkled, eyes narrowed, jaw locked. But all of these changes vanished in an instant when he realized he was being observed. He returned the stare, now presenting himself carefully emotionless.

Somehow, it frightened Zelda more than open anger would.

“Please tell me it's not you,” she pleaded. “You can't- Anjean said- it's not you, right? It's just some misunderstanding.”

His silence had never felt so threatening before.

“No,” she breathed through a lump in her throat. “You... you are the Demon King. You are Malladus.”

His eyes darkened. “I am not Malladus.”

“But you are a Demon King, that's what you want to say?! The one who kidnapped my ancestor?! The one who-”

Ganondorf made a slight movement with his hand, as if he wanted to reach for her, and already scared and wary Zelda stepped back in an instant, her back hitting the wall and the paper story. Before she could blink something huge blocked her sight. Ildefonzo had thrown himself in front of her, his arms splayed.

“Don't touch her!” he growled. The effect would be more menacing would his glare not fall somewhere on Ganondorf's chest instead of his face.

The ghost gave him a look full of contempt, and for a long terrifying moment Zelda expected he'd somehow throw Ildefonzo out of the way and go straight for her.

She didn't expect Ganondorf to take a step back. He seemed almost surprised, looking at Ildefonzo, then at her – no, no at her, at the paper story she was pressed into. His stare returned to Ildefonzo and slid over him as if sizing him up for battle, focusing on his left arm, perhaps expecting an attack from that side. But after only a few seconds of this inspection Ganondorf's anger reared its head again, burning in his eyes.

“Ignorant children,” he gritted through his teeth. “I don't know what I expected. You neither hold what I'm looking for nor you even know _anything_ about its existence. I've had enough. I am not going to waste my time with you anymore.” With that, he swooped around, transformed into a red sprite and shot through the window.

A chill ran down Zelda's spine. She slid free under Ildefonzo's arm and ignoring his shouting ran to the door. She pushed it open, stumbled outside, looked around blinking in the sun – where is he, where did he go – but no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't see Ganondorf anywhere. He was gone.

The wandering spirit was gone, and the full moon was the very next day.

“Uh, miss?”

Zelda blinked and stared at the man sitting in front of the museum, his face anxious. “Do you and your partner feel well? You were yelling rather loud, so I looked through the window and... is arguing with air something the young ones do these days?”

“...no,” she could only answer. “No, it's not. I'm... I'm sorry for the trouble.” As if in a trance she let her feet lead her back into the museum, passing by still battle-ready if confused Ildefonzo.

“Where is he, Zelda?” he asked looking around.

“He got away.”

“Oh, thank all the Spirits. Are you alright? He didn't hurt you, did he?”

Zelda didn't answer. Her legs suddenly refused to obey her, so she half-sat, half-collapsed on the floor – and hit her fist against it as hard as she could. “Why, Ildefonzo?!” she shouted, “why didn't I notice there was something wrong with him? Why can't I see things everyone else seems to see?! Why do I always do stupid mistakes?!” Angry tears forced their way down her cheeks. “Why am _I_ so stupid?!”

“You're not!” Ildefonzo was quick to say. “It's all the guy's fault! Yeah, you need to pay attention more, and probably toughen up a little, but you're definitely not stupid, Zelda! I wouldn't take you as my apprentice if you were.”

“Thanks, 'Fonzo.” For a moment more she let herself cry, then took a deep breath and wiped away the tears. “Okay. Okay, so he's gone. That's fine. We'll think of something. We can fix it. Somehow.”

“That's the spirit.” Ildefonzo patted her arm, only to quickly withdraw it and stare at a little white paper piece stuck to it. “Wait, you have something... isn't that...”

“Oh no.” Zelda snatched the piece and ran to the last papercraft story, quickly inserting the lost narration piece in its proper place. “There. Just like it was before. I'm sure nobody will notice.” Only now did she realize that in previous shock she hadn't even read the rest of the text by the picture of Ganondorf. As much as she didn't feel like doing it now, maybe it would give her at least some explanation.

 

_Just then, a huge, ominous king appeared! He carried Princess Zelda away..._

_The evil king sought the sacred power passed down to Hyrulian princesses. He schemed to take the power and use it himself._

 

There was a few more lines about how the Hero of the Winds chased after him through the land killing all kinds of monsters, and then, a _fter long and hard adventuring, he defeated the evil king._ There was even a picture: the Hero stabbing the half-abstract enemy with a sword while the Princess looked in shock.

_The evil king..._ Huh, now that she thought about it, the term Demon King wasn't anywhere in the story. Not that it changed much, but... She realized she's turning the way Ganondorf reacted over an over in her head, as if her subconsciousness tried to point something out to her. Why would he be _sad_? He said he wasn't Malladus, and that was probably true, judging from all the descriptions of the former she had heard. But... why would there be a second Demon King?

And what kind of a storymaker would ever think about a phrase like “long and hard adventuring”, anyway?

A sudden suspicion found its way into her mind.

“Ildefonzo,” she started, “you've been here a lot as a kid, right? Do you know if the author has actually seen all these events?”

“The ones from this story? Well, no, but he was a very close friend of the Hero of Winds and the first Queen.”

“Okay. Okay, so he didn't see any of this. And that's his first story. How old was he when he made it, again?”

“Wait, let me count... eleven.”

“Eleven.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, Spirits.” She put a hand to her forehead, wanting to laugh but coming up only with something that sounded like choking. “Eleven. When I was eleven, I still thought you could summon a Tingle Man by chanting _Kooloo Limpah_ three times into a mirror.”

“I know, Zelda, but even if he was a kid, he got the story straight from the Hero of Winds' mouth and I doubt he would purposefully lie about what he heard.”

“How old was the Hero of Winds, then?”

“...twelve.”

“Of course.” She stared at the pictures. “It all makes sense now. This is a story a twelve-year-old boy would tell. It's as ambigous as it can get.” She pointed at the first picture. “Just look here: the Hero of Winds and the Queen started their journey _after a series of strange events_ – what events? And then they suddenly find old ruins and she gets turned into a Princess? All this talk about an ancient ruined kingdom, but then it suddenly says _the Kingdom of Hyrule?_ As far as I'm concerned, we're standing in it right now, and it's very much not ruined!”

“Zelda,” Ildefonzo started carefully.

“No, no, wait! There's Ganondorf, right? What, did he really just appear out of nowhere to kidnap a Princess? Why does he have red eyes anyway? And... that sentence, you see that sentence? He wanted the power to _use it himself,_ alright, but what for? Maybe it wasn't anything evil! Maybe that's why he got upset!”

“...uh, Zelda? Personal space.”

She blinked, realizing she'd gotten up into his face, and took a few steps back.

“Thanks. Listen, I don't want to rain on your parade, but don't you think you may be... reading a bit too much into this?”

“What? Of course I'm not!” She felt her cheeks burning from sheer excitement. “Look, the next picture – the king is stabbed with a sword, but Ganondorf told me he drowned! And the way they're positioned, it looks like he got his chest or stomach pierced, and yet I didn't see a single mark on his clothes! Don't you understand, 'Fonzo? This story is out of whack! Something is seriously wrong here, and I don't think anyone but Ganondorf himself can explain exactly what! You didn't see the look he had on his face! Maybe he's not a Demon King at all! He's a regretful spirit, so he must regret something – it must be his past what he regrets, but what? I want to know!”

Ildefonzo put a hand over his eyes. “Please don't tell me you're going to go after him and get yourself killed just because you're _curious_.”

“I'm not just curious! We need him!” She took a deep breath. “Listen, I know you don't trust him, but bear with me for a second. Anjean said it's like a gauntlet track, right? We were lucky enough to run into each other, now we have to stick together unless the seal is strenghtened. You heard what she said, spirits like him are hard to find.”

“So what, do you expect me to do nothing while he plots to kidnap you?”

“I'm just trying to tell you that - - oh for Spirits' sake, he's a disembodied ghost, how would he even kidnap me?”

“I don't know, he could possess your body and fly around with it cackling or something!”

“Oh that's just silly! And Anjean even said he wouldn't hurt us! I believe her!”

“Anjean this, Anjean that - and what can _she_ know? She's just sitting holed in the Tower of Spirits! We don't even know if we can trust her!”

“Well guess what, mom and dad did! And so did your father, Ildefonzo, but apparently you know so much better than all of them!”

Ildefonzo looked as if she hit him: first shocked, than angry, but finally swallowing the fury down before it had a chance to evolve. “Fine,” he said closing his eyes in exasperation. “Fine. We're going after him. Who cares what's gonna happen.” He stomped to the exit and outside. Zelda ran after him, casting an apologizing smile to the man in front of the museum, who looked like he reconsidered his career choice.

When she reached the train hall, Ildefonzo had already ignited a kerosene-soaked cloth and threw it into the firebox much stronger than common sense dictated. “Do you even know where he went?” he asked not looking at her.

“Not a clue,” she admitted. “I thought about going to the Tower of Spirits and asking Anjean. If anyone knows his whereabouts, it'd be her.”

“Sure, why not. Let's go and ask Anjean. It's only a three-hour ride through the busy fields. Nothing major.”

Zelda sighed. It was going to be a long day.

 

\- - -

 

The Flying Hylian moved through the green fields of Hyrule towards the Tower of Spirit, now maybe half an hour away. Zelda leaned out from the cab to look at its slender imposing shape. “We're pretty close,” she announced.

“Good,” Ildefonzo growled, accenting the word with a thud of his shovel's blade against the cab's floor. “I want to have a word with the sage.”

“ _Oh, do you? What would you like to speak with me about, then?_ ”

“Well, for starters-” His eyes widened as he and Zelda looked around startled. “What the hell!”

The voice of Anjean laughed. “ _Do not fear, young man, it's just telepathy. You're close enough to the Tower that I can use it. So, you wanted something from me?”_

“Please tell us where Ganondorf is!” Zelda hurried before Ildefonzo could blurt out something that definitely wouldn't help their relationship with Anjean. “He decided we're wasting his time since we don't have what he's looking for, and stormed off somewhere.”

“ _Oh dear,_ ” Anjean sighed. “ _I was afraid it could happen. Yes, I can sense him... he's not that far. If you want to find him, go to the Sand Realm. I believe you should take the right at the next crossing._ ”

“The Sand Realm. Got that.”

“ _Is there anything else you want to speak with me about?_ ”

“Yeah, in fact there is,” Ildefonzo said, “like your decision that an evil Demon King kidnapping young princesses was just what we needed!”

“ _...so you know._ ”

Ildefonzo growled “Like hell we know!” the same time Zelda blurted out a “What?!”

“ _I'm sorry you had to learn about it like that.”_

“Wait, wait, wait.” Zelda pulled the brake lever to slow down and stop the train; she suddenly felt much too confused to focus on driving. “Are you trying to tell me that ridiculous papercraft story was accurate? The details don't come together! And it's just too... too simple too be true!”

“ _And yet it is. The details are just this – details. Sometimes the simplest explanation turns out to be the truest, no matter how many others we try to find, and how much we try to defend ourselves from believing in it.”_ She sighed when Zelda slumped her shoulders losing all confidence. “ _Don't worry about it so much, my dear. Mistakes are a very natural thing to do. It's what we learn from them that counts.”_

“Changing topics, are we?” Ildefonzo glared at thin air. “Why didn't you tell us the guy's a Demon King, Anjean? It seems like a pretty important detail to me!”

“ _Forgive me, but I had to promise him not to share anything about his past with you. He wouldn't talk with me otherwise._ ”

“And why did you even want to talk to him, huh? Do you hang out with demons much? Have you two met before?”

A long moment of silence. “ _...I am not sure myself. But please, you have to get him back for the sake of the entire land. If I can demand any more of your trust, believe me that he is crucial to getting through the Tower of Spirits, and that he will not hurt you – especially you, Zelda. Please hurry. The gauntlet track has almost reached the tunnel. May the Spirits of Good guide you.”_

“You wait just a second, Anjean!” Ildefonzo growled. “What do you mean that you're not sure?!”

But the voice didn't return to answer him.

“Great,” he said. “Just great. This whole day is just wonderful.”

“Ildefonzo-”

“I know, I know. Let's just go to the Sand Realm and get it over with.”

Zelda couldn't do much more than pull the throttle and once more gather speed, taking the right at the next crossing.

 


	6. Chapter 6

The Sand Realm. Now that Zelda thought about it, it was obvious. Ganondorf had looked at the desert a lot in Papuchia. _Perhaps that's where he was from?_ , she had a sudden thought, but she quickly dismissed it. She doubted anyone from a place so hot would wear so much black.

They headed east, and soon the rich green grass transformed into scarce bushes. Funny, she always thought the desert was much further away, but before she knew it they had already found themselves riding through vast spaces of sand with only huge stones serving as landmarks. If not for the magical nature of the Spirit Tracks, they would get quickly buried in the sand, or bent from the heat. The firebox became even more of a curse than usually.

“What now?” Ildefonzo wondered looking out of the cab shielding his eyes from the sun. “The desert is huge, Zelda. He can hide anywhere. I doubt we'll find him just by driving through.”

“Maybe we will,” she replied. “The lost wanderers keep to the tracks.”

“That's very poetic and all, but I don't think it works that way.”

“Well, I hope it does, otherwise...” She stopped, because in the distance she noticed a shape of black going down the tracks. “'Hey, I think I see him!”

“You sure it's him?”

“Yeah, he's pretty unmistakable!”

For a minute more the Flying Hylian moved closer, then slowed down and came to a halt. Zelda had some quailms about just letting it block the tracks, but decided it wouldn't matter. Nobody ever drove through there. Which made it a perfect place for being alone – perhaps that's what Ganondorf had sought.

“You have half an hour to try and reason with him,” Ildefonzo said with his arms crossed. “Then I'm coming to get you.”

“Sure, sure. Don't worry.” She scurried down the tracks. “Ganondorf, wait!” she shouted.

Ganondorf didn't stop, if anything he quickened his pace. “What do you want?”

“I want you to stop throwing a tantrum and come back! We have a Tower to climb tomorrow, and _you_ have a lot of questions to answer. Like, are you really a Demon King? Why would you kidnap my ancestor for?”

“ _To take the power and use it myself,_ ” he growled. “Can't you read?”

“I can, but I think that story got the details wrong. You seemed really upset about it too. And it doesn't even say what you wanted to use that power _for._ What was it?”

Ganondorf stopped and glanced at her over his shoulder. “I command your thinking, but not your curiosity.” He looked around with furrowed brow, then stepped off the tracks and through the sand, heading between stone structures that littered the desert.

“Wait, where are you going? What's in this direction?”

“I don't know.” Seeing her expression, he elaborated, “I do not know what, but something lies there dormant. A sort of compelling energy, as if a shatter of fate awaiting to be found and acted upon.”

“Is it far?”

“No.”

“Then I'll go with you.”

“Go with me?” His eyes flickered. “Following me after what you learned, without even bringing the bodyguard? How can you know I'm not leading you to a trap?”

“If you wanted to hurt me, I don't think you'd wait until your identity is revealed.”

“Ah, but perhaps I've just been waiting to get you alone.”

“And you wouldn't tell me that either. So what, are we going?”

Ganondorf expression was half exasperated and half something that could be amusement. He turned to face the desert. “Fine. As long as you don't utter a word on the way, you may come. But only you.”

Zelda stepped off the tracks after him, but before she could make more than a few steps, she heard a piercing whistle. Startled she looked towards the Flying Hylian; Ildefonzo was hurrying in her direction, probably thinking she was being led astray. Zelda cursed, quickly took off her engineer hat and waved it over her head: the common hand signal for “Stop, wait, do not go any further.” Ildefonzo stopped, surprised, and Zelda thanked whoever first got the idea to make the engineer caps bright red so one could see them from the distance, even if they couldn't turn into a makeshift flag like the more traditional bandanas. She swiftly moved to another position, this time with her arm straight to the side - “Everything's in order” - and then swung the hat in a small circle before her. “Back up, space needed.”

Ildefonzo stared at her for a long time before throwing his arms up in exasperation and turning back in a very clear “oh fine, do whatever”.

Ganondorf led Zelda through the sand and stones, a path considerably easier for him than for her, seeing that her feet sunk after every step. Fortunately, the sand was the only big opponent; even though Zelda had expected to pant from heat after a few minutes, she discovered this part of the desert didn't seem that harsh, probably because they were still relatively close to the Forest Realm. She swore she could still feel the green fields in the wind. It was a strange experience, going through heated sands with that pleasant breeze cooling her.

They came upon a place where two large spires met each other making an alcove. In it, there stood a piece of stone, this one smaller than a person. It seemed too smooth to be created by nature, and indeed when she came closer, Zelda realized it was a tablet, perhaps a grave, with something etched in the stone. In this moment her thoughts ended, because Ganondorf stopped so abruptly she almost walked through him.

“Ganondorf?”

He didn't answer. At first Zelda thought it was yet another one of his bouts of silence, but after a few seconds, when the wind died down for a moment, she could hear he had been whispering in a tone strangely aghast, “no, no... it can't... who... _why_...”

Zelda approached the stone to see what caused this shock. It was a simple grave, just a stone tablet tarnished by winds, and yet for a moment it made her forget how to breathe, because without a doubt the name written on it was _GANONDORF_.

“Is... is that... yours?” she asked, but Ganondorf seemed far too shocked to be able to respond to anything.

The grave didn't have flowers put under it; it didn't have candles. The only distinct feature was a stone cylinder near the bottom, almost obscured by sand. It looked like one of the holders that had once been mounted on houses as places for the postman to put incoming letters, then being sent in form of scrolls. Such impractical if decorative invention wasn't being used anymore. One could only see them in two places: on the oldest buildings of Hyrule, and on the oldest graves, where friends and family could put little trinkets and prayer cards in hopes of passing them, like a letter, to their beloved in Heavens.

The cylinder wasn't empty.

Glancing at Ganondorf to make sure he didn't mind (he still looked as if he refused to take part in reality anymore), she crouched and retrieved a paper scroll yellow with age, bound with a red ribbon once used for important letters. Or rather, she retrieved what was left of the scroll. The majority of it had been destroyed, either eaten by animals or succumbed to elements. Only the middle part hidden in the cylinder survived, small enough to fit in her fist. She pulled on the ribbon curiously.

“DON'T!”

Zelda jumped and looked at Ganondorf with wide eyes. She had never heard him yell before. “Do not read it!” he spat. He tried to swipe the letter out of her grasp, gritting his teeth in frustration when it inevitably failed. “Open it and show it to me – but _do not dare_ _to read it_!”

“Okay! Okay. Calm down.” She untied the ribbon and unrolled what turned out to be remainders of just a single page. Inside there was also a stiff cardboard piece that after the years of being rolled up stayed curved. After a closer look she realized it was a pictograph. She could only notice something that looked like a piece of their Castle before Ganondorf barked at her to not look.

“Fine, not looking,” she muttered, rising the pages and the pictograph so Ganondorf could see them. He drifted closer to read the letter, subconsciously trying to grab it before he remembered he couldn't. But the moment he touched the paper it glistened with faint light. The glow extended from both sides of the letter, and when Ganondorf withdrew his hand, in his grip was left a translucent page, much bigger than the scroll and in pristine condition: a phantom of the letter as it had once looked. There was even the pictograph attached.

Zelda took a moment to consider why on earth would something like that happen, but quickly decided she'd seen too many ghost-related things lately to be bothered anymore. Maybe the letter had been enchanted to always be legible to its addresee. Or maybe spirits could simply interact with other spirits... If a letter was destroyed, could you say that it died?

Ganondorf read only a few words of the phantom copy before glancing at her, turning on his heel and taking a few steps away in search of privacy. Zelda was left holding the letter in the air. Well, since it was already unrolled, she supposed it wouldn't hurt to look. Just a little peek at-

“Do not even think about it,” Ganondorf growled without looking.

Zelda almost dropped the letter.

Ganondorf read for a long while in complete silence and stillness. When it was obvious he had to be finishing, he turned the page back to the beginning and read it again. Finally his arm dropped as if suddenly weakened, yet the grip threatened to crumple the letter into a paper ball.

“What does it say?” Zelda asked after a minute like that passed. She didn't know what she expected to hear from him, but certainly not the gentle question that followed.

“Where is his grave?”

“Excuse me?”

“The Hero of Winds. Where is his grave?”

“The Hero of... oh. _Oh_.” Zelda looked away. “I... don't think he _has_ a grave.”

“...why?” Ganondorf's voice was still calm, but some uneasiness crawled into it.

“Right, you wouldn't know. It's... not something that gets turned into a papercraft story. From what people told me, when the Hero of Winds was really old, he went a bit... you know. He got this ridiculous idea to swim across the sea back to where he came from, all by himself. One day he took a boat – not even a steamship, but a little boat with a sail – and went into the ocean, just like that. Later that day there was a huge storm that lasted well into the night. The next morning... they found pieces of the boat.”

“...and?” Ganondorf prompted.

“And?” Zelda repeated in confusion. “That's all.”

Ganondorf held still for a minute more, and then finally moved, pacing briskly from one place to another, as if his own thoughts started to overwhelm him.

“...no, he could survive, he had to,” he muttered, “that was all a plan – yes, if only he still had _this_ – that's why he took a sailboat, a sailboat specifically – if there was another ship, and the storm covered his tracks – the others knew and that's why there's not a grave - that had to be it, he had to plan to return home, if not – no, he couldn't, not the Hero, he couldn't...”

He didn't seem to be paying any attention to Zelda, and she tried to sneak a peek at the letter once again, but gave up as soon as Ganondorf stopped his pacing and looked at her accusingly. He huffed and closed his eyes, his forehead wrinkling in frustration. “Zelda,” he said, “you are going to burn this letter. _Now_.”

“What? How? There's nothing to start fire here.”

“The train.”

“...oh, right! The firebox. So... we're going to go back to the train, I'll burn the letter... and then you'll help me get through the Tower of Spirits tomorrow. And then we all can go on our merry way. Promise?”

“I am not promising anything.”

“Well, then I am not promising to burn this letter either. Maybe I'll take a look.”

His eyes narrowed. “...very well. The Tower of Spirits. But I am free to go wherever I wish after that.”

“Fine. Let's go.”

She didn't really want to destroy the letter, but right now getting Ganondorf back to them was the most important thing. She headed back to the Flying Hylian, aware of his eyes on her back.

Ildefonzo had been waiting for them standing a respectable distance from the heated engine, fanning himself with his hat. “Finally. You got him back?”

“Yeah.”

“Good to hear. It's high time we turn back, it's almost four.”

“I guess.”

“...you alright, Zelda?”

“Ganondorf wants me to burn this in the firebox.” But when Ildefonzo shrugged and waved his hand towards the engine in a _go ahead_ way, she found out she couldn't force herself to step closer. If she had just a second to read it... but when she glanced behind her, Ganondorf was still watching her intently. He would get furious.

“Oh, just give it to me,” Ildefonzo said eventually, snatching the letter out of her grasp. He climbed into the cab, spent there a short moment, and reemerged clapping dust out of his hands. “Done. You don't have to mull over it anymore. Can we go now?”

“...Yeah,” Zelda said. “We can.” She looked at Ganondorf, who nodded to her once before turning into a sprite. Apparently he didn't wish to spend any more time within their close proximity, because he flew inside the half-empty tender instead of the cab.

The sun glared at them as they moved back through the desert, making the usual hot cab an oven and the greenery of the Forest Realm more than welcome to see again. As they passed by the Tower of Spirits, Zelda tried to call Anjean telepathically, but failed. Maybe it was a one-way thing. Or maybe Anjean just didn't want to talk with them.

In the distance they could see the white towers of the Castle, and Zelda had a sudden urge to just drive to the big roundhouse, leave the train in someone else's care and rest, and not worry about getting through the fields again tomorrow. But no, they couldn't do it, the strict regulations of the roundhouse wouldn't let them stay there for long – well, unless they paid dearly, or unless someone from the royal family used their influence to - - _no_ , Zelda thought to herself and forced her eyes to stop wandering to the Castle and focus on the tracks in front of her.

An hour passed, then another. Somehow the way seemed longer than it should be, or perhaps it was just that Zelda felt tired and frankly confused about the whole situation with Ganondorf. As if that wasn't enough, the moinks were a chaos, wandering around and on the tracks, suddenly losing their sense of orientation. Zelda had to drive with one hand on the brake lever and the second ready to pull the whistle cord. It started to irritate her, because if only the stupid animals would behave as usual, the Flying Hylian could go twice as fast, and they would be home and could rest, and she still couldn't stop thinking about the letter and the pictograph and the papercraft story, and honestly she just had _enough_ of this whole day. Feeling a headache approaching fast, she sighed and massaged her temple.

“You sure you're up to this, Zelda?” Ildefonzo asked, a glint of worry peeking out over the day's irritation. “We did like seven hours today. I know the rules say you shift after ten, but you're looking pretty tired.”

“No, no, it's fine, I've got this,” she said, because driving a train as demanding as the Flying Hylian always felt a bit overwhelming and she was pretty used to it already, and besides – it was an unofficial way of the engineers to relay on yourself the most. If she started to laze around, she would become even more of a talk in the Castle's roundhouse. And Ildefonzo was already too tired with his shovels and fires, and paperwork, and looking out for her, to throw on him more responsibilities.

“Well, if you say so,” he said. “I guess Aboda _is_ less than an hour away.”

Therefore, Zelda drove further, trying to get her head in the train. It wasn't hard, really. She just had to watch out for the road, apply the brakes slightly (Honestly, what was wih the moinks today?), check the first, second, third gauge and everything else on her side (What was that letter? What did that picture of the Castle mean – what about the Castle?), lean left to check the other half of the readings (A memory? Blackmail?), read water and fire, brake again and whistle in short bursts (Why do they run so confused – even the whistle barely helps), pick up some speed because the moinks were away, and now the moinks were back so brake again – brake again – why did the brakes not apply -

They couldn't brake.

Zelda hadn't even noticed when she used up all the air.

Suddenly she was wide awake and firmly stuck in the horror of reality. “No!” she yelled in panic, “'Fonzo, the air- the brakes! Come on, come on!” she cried and pulled the lever as if it wasn't already all the way to application and the brakes should have jumpstarted already and what if they needed a whole minute to recharge them and _no!_

Ildefonzo was by her instantly, caught her by the arm and shoved out of the way, yelling “Hold on tight!”. He produced something thin and shining from his pocket, waved his arm once, twice - -

The entire Flying Hylian jerked. Zelda could only hold to the closest stable thing with all her might while the force of the brakes pulled her forward, tortured screeching of the blocks on wheels piercing through her ears. It seemed like minutes until they stopped. Zelda refused to open her eyes or relax her hold for a bit more, just in case. Still shaky she pulled herself up to the window, glaring at two moinks that cast her innocent looks from just a few feet in front of the engine before trotting away.

Ildefonzo stood up with a groan and a few curses, massaging his leg with one hand. In the other he held a long white-blue baton.

“Ildefonzo?” Zelda asked slowly. “What... did you just do?”

“I used the brakes,” he answered, his voice a bit wobbly.

“The _fanned out_ brakes?”

“Yeah.” He raised the glinting baton. “With this. I guess there's no point in hiding it now.”

“...Ildefonzo, that's a stick.”

“Yeah, I know, but - okay, now don't freak out, but it can control air.” He waved it and Zelda felt a gentle breeze against her cheek. “I think it's called a Wind Waker. You know, because the air brake system is called a wind jammer, and this thing can unblock it.”

“Oh. Of course. Why not. But _how on Hyrule did you do that?!_ ”

“Erm... well, since you used up all the air from the auxiliary reservoir and didn't allow it to charge up again, the pressure there was still lower than in the brake pipe even after reduction, the triple valve didn't detect the change and got stuck. So I forced a whole bunch of air at once from the pipe to the auxiliary, and from there rushed it to the brakes when the valve shifted. Thank Spirits it worked.” He grimaced massaging his bruised leg. “Maybe a bit too well.”

“How did you even know how to do that?” Zelda finally caught her breath.

“I experimented a bit before on my own, but this now... I admit this was mostly instinct.” He looked at the baton like it was both the most wondrous and the most suspicious thing in the world. “I... suddenly knew exactly how to swing it. Probably magic.”

“What do you mean by-”

“Why have you stopped the train?!”

Ganondorf had appeared in all his glory at the back of the cab, half-passing through the floor and visibly irritated, but backed off with a strangled gasp. His expression changed from shock to anger, his eyes glued to the baton in Ildefonzo's hand. “ _Where did you get this_ ,” he hissed.

Since he couldn't exactly be heard by Ildefonzo, Zelda quickly asked, “Where did you even get this Wind Waker? It looks familiar.”

“Hey, I didn't steal it from the Wind Memorial, if that's what you're thinking! That one there is only a replica. The real thing was given to my grandpa for safe-keeping by the Hero of Winds before he died.”

Zelda glanced at Ganondorf and was surprised to see his anger had been replaced by some sudden realization. “The Wind Memorial?” he asked.

“The one in Aboda. You know, the one in front of the graveyard, on the hill?”

One moment Ganondorf stood before her, the next his place took the little ball of red light that floated through the window and hurried southwest, to Aboda.

Zelda sighed and leaned against the cab wall, wiping sweat from her brow, probably leaving there a long black smudge in the process. “Phew. Thank Spirits nothing happened. As soon as we're sure the brakes are fully charged, I'm taking us straight to Aboda.” She took her place at the right side of the cab, looking at the gauges to check their pressure and water, and was surprised to feel a heavy hand on her arm.

She almost never saw Ildefonzo that serious.

“...'Fonzo? What's wrong?”

He exhaled heavily, as if finally making a decision, and said, “Take the shovel.”

Suddenly, all of the cab's heat ceased to exist as she felt her chest freeze. “What?”

“Take the shovel, Zelda. I'm getting us home, because clearly you're not able to.”

And just like that, the frost turned back into heat of anger. “Are you serious? You can't just order me to throw the coal around anymore! I'm an engineer!”

“You're not an engineer yet!” Ildefonzo raised his voice as well. “And guess what, it shows! You almost made us crash, _twice,_ and you don't even seem to care!”

“What- of course I care! But we didn't crash, did we?! Come on, nothing happened! Everything's fine! I had to make a mistake eventually, right? I can only learn from that!” She could tell by Ildefonzo's expression that she only made it worse, and oh Spirits, she should really stop talking right now, but the words spew out on their own, “I mean, we're fine, the Flying Hylian's fine, you were there to help me and-”

“And what if I wasn't there?!” he exploded, pointing at the tracks ahead. “What if that was _a person_?!”

The sinking feeling of guilt finally made Zelda shut up and avert her sight. She tried to come up with something, anything else to explain herself, but couldn't. Ildefonzo was terribly right. She gathered courage to look at him again, and noticed his arm still pointing at the tracks was trembling.

_Oh no._

“Ildefonzo,” she started, “I'm sorry, I know that you, I-”

“Just take the damn shovel.”

The rest of the road passed in silence.

 


	7. Chapter 7

The remainings of dusk lay a red shade over Aboda when they finally disembarked the Flying Hylian. The platform had been empty, so was the hall and the house. Not a ghost in sight. A strange feeling turned Zelda's attention to the hill by the village. She didn't even have to ask Ildefonzo if he would tie the engine up himself. While he didn't raise his voice anymore, he still dismissed her almost immediately.

The evening in Aboda was as usual warm, but Zelda still shivered ascending the stairs leading to the hilltop. This place was said to lay closest in Hyrule to demonic realms. The first time she had heard about it, she assumed these were just legends – but later she asked her dad about them, and the tense silence she got in return spoke volumes.

As she expected, Ganondorf was there, standing before the Wind Memorial. Zelda made sure to approach loudly not to startle him.

“Ganondorf?” she called. No answer. She came closer, up to the very Memorial. She remembered how it looked like from her childhood – a stone tablet with the Wind Waker, or rather a replica of the Wind Waker, visible behind a glass pane - but she did not recall the inscription written on it.

 

_On this day a hundred years ago Queen Tetra Zelda I and the Hero of Winds first arrived on the shore of the village they called Outset, now Aboda, to one day establish the Kingdom of Hyrule. This memorial marks both the anniversary and the day the last member of their crew passed away._

_May the spirits of the past rest peacefully._

 

Zelda glanced at Ganondorf. “It's getting late,” she said. “We should go back to the village.”

Ganondorf didn't react. He looked like when Zelda had first seen him – motionless, his stare directed at the Memorial but unfocused, seeing and not seeing, or maybe glancing into the past.

“Okay. I get it. I'm still not sure what it's about, but I'll give you some time. I'll be at Ildefonzo's if you need me. It's just down the hill anyway.”

No answer.

 

\- - -

 

Zelda woke up with a start. For a while she wasn't sure what made her awake; the night was dark and quiet, Ildefonzo had been snoring peacefully on the other bed.

Then she heard a scream.

She sat up, her heart beating wildly. For a second she hoped it was just her imagination – but then it repeated, a faraway yell coming through the half-open window.

“Ildefonzo!” She shook his arm. “Wake up!”

“Ngh-wha? What d'you want?”

“Listen!” She waited until yet another chilling scream. “That, did you hear that?!”

“Hear what? Please don't tell me the kids are trying to break in to play with the engine again.”

“Someone's screaming!”

Ildefonzo rubbed his eyes with a groan. “Zelda, I swear... you sure you didn't just have a nightmare?”

“Of course not, I...” Suddenly it hit her: if Ildefonzo didn't hear it, it could only mean... “Oh, sorry, you're right,” she hurried with a hopefully convincing sheepish smile, “it must have been just a dream. Go back to sleep. I'll go get some fresh air to calm down.” Ildefonzo rolled his eyes and turned on his other side.

Once outside, she quickly localized the noise: as she feared, it came from the graveyard hill. She climbed it jumping two steps at once.

The almost-full moon lightened the night, but even under its bright gaze Ganondorf was still a shape of darkness. The robes swished behind him as he paced from one place to another. Sometimes he swiped his fist at a tree in frustration, not even caring it wouldn't connect; sometimes he clawed at his head as if trying to rip out thoughts. He yelled words Zelda didn't know the meaning of. He screamed _Hyrule_ ; he screamed what sounded like her sister's name; he screamed one foreign word over and over again, that could have been _no_ , or _stop_ , or maybe _help_.

“Ganondorf!” Zelda shouted trying to snap him out of it, “Ganondorf, what's wrong? What happened?!”

From uncontrollable movement he froze into stillness, only his arms moving with ragged breaths. Even under the moon she couldn't distinguish his expression in amidst the darkness.

“Leave me alone.” He sounded almost frightened.

“It's alright, Ganondorf,” she took a step towards him, “it's just me, Zelda-”

Ganondorf moved so quick she had to take a few startled seconds to comprehend what exactly happened. He had pulled two long shapes out of his giant sleeves, clashing them in a cross in front of himself like a shield; twin swords.

Zelda took a step back. “Ganondorf? What-”

“Don't come any closer!” he roared. “How long are you going to torment me?!”

“Torment you? What are you talking about?”

Ganondorf stared at her for a moment more before uncrossing the swords and turning his back on her. “Go away,” he managed through a tight throat. “I'll be fine. Go away. I beg of you.”

She should have said something. Guilty feeling nagged her when she was backing off, stepping down the stairs and to the house. She should have done or say something, snap him out of it. But her reason told her there was no way she could help that she knew of, and it was probably right.

With a heavy heart she entered the guest room, closed the window and slipped back into her bed.

“Psst, Zelda!”

She rolled on her other side. Ildefonzo had leaned out from his bed towards her. “Everything's alright?” he whispered.

“Yeah. Ganondorf is, um... having a rough night outside, but he said he's gonna be fine.” At least she hoped he would be.

“Then he's not in the house? Any chances he returns soon?”

“I think he's gonna be out for a long time. Why?”

Ildefonzo pulled out something small from under his cover. “Look what I have.” He rustled it for good measure before passing it to Zelda. She took one look and even in the darkness instantly recognized the remains of the letter.

“No way!” she gasped. “How...?!”

“I didn't burn it. I said to myself: hey, when a demon guy tells you to destroy something, it's probably something incriminating or important to defeating him if need be. Besides, you seemed really dissapointed you had to get rid of it. Sorry, should've given it to you earlier, but I can't see the guy so I wasn't sure if he wouldn't see and flip out.” He looked the other way. “And... I guess I was pretty upset with you... yeah. Go ahead, read it.”

Zelda reached to light the lamp, but hesitated. “To be fair, I probably shouldn't be reading other people's letters.”

“Who cares? The guy's a _Demon King!_ ”

“It's still something private.”

“Like that conversation in the Tower of Spirits you didn't listen to at all? Come on, Zelda, I know that if you don't read it, you're gonna just mull over it instead of concentrating on work. Consider reading it a favour to both me and the Flying Hylian.”

The lamp was lit and the letter's remains unrolled. The pictograph tucked in it portrayed a part of a giant white castle, and only after a closer inspection Zelda realized its towers looked slightly different than the ones she knew. But all in all it was a really old pictograph, and the Castle probably used to look different back in the days.

The letter scrap, even if two-sided, contained much less text than she expected.

 

_wishes for destruction of vast kingdoms and creation of tiny steamboats, yet my own will not be granted. No tracks lead across oceans, and for years of wandering the seas I have gotten too old. It is because of this age, perhaps, that I start to regret; that I finally understand what you_

 

_that had to be followed, whether it has guided our ships into paradise islands or rocks. But even though that wind blows still, I have hope our children are not at its mercy anymore; they have harnessed the storms of the seas into steam, and no wind can stop the iron of their will. I believe_

 

“That's it?” Zelda folded the letter back with a sigh. “Darn, I bet all the important parts were the ones destroyed. I'm just more confused now. Do you know what all of it means?”

Ildefonzo didn't answer. He'd been lying with his hands under his head, staring at the ceiling.

“'Fonzo? Is something wrong?”

“Ah,” he blinked snapping out of thoughts, “no, nothing. Just... I'm wondering about the last few days. Tell me, Zelda - you draw from between a few trains to drive for the practical exam, right? Which one did you get again?”

“Little Willow.”

“Of course.” He stared into space again. “The tiny one with the automatic injector and fuel feed. The easiest one of the bunch.”

“If you're implying I bought the judges to get it-”

“I'm not! Of course I'm not. But Zelda, tell me honestly... if you got anything else – if you got the Northern Dragon or even the Flying Hylian, and had to drive them perfectly by yourself, would you pass?”

Zelda opened her mouth to say _yes, of course_ , but somewhere on the way from her brain it hesitated and turned into “I, well, I'm sure that... um...” Her voice trailed off. “I... no. I wouldn't.” She stared into space, feeling an urge to pull a blanket over her head and hide from the world. “I'm sorry. I should know I'm not ready yet. I've put us both in danger.”

“Don't apologize. It's my fault too. I should've noticed something was off.” He sighed. “Well, at least we both gained some experience from that. You know what they say: You'll never learn how to use a shovel if you don't throw one into the firebox."

Zelda cringed. "Don't remind me."

"Please, I've burned at least three. Weren't you there one of these times? When we started training on the Flying Hylian and I had to learn right-handed firing? Heh, still have trouble with that one, southpaw and all. But I remember what the old man told me: sometimes you gotta grit your teeth, gather your energy and power through, and accept that you're going to burn a shovel or two. Mistakes happen, even really bad mistakes. And they're - they're nothing, right? You just forget about them and then you're perfectly fine. Everything's always gonna be fine as long as you get back into the train the next day, and try again, and everything's going to be just...” He covered his eyes with his hand. “...fine..."

“'Fonzo?”

He took a deep shuddering breath. “Zelda, listen to me. I have to tell you something. There... might have been a reason why I pushed you to take the exam so quickly. It's because if you became an engineer in your own right, then I wouldn't have to ride with you, and – listen, I'm just not sure if I want to work on a train anymore.”

Zelda sat upright. “What? But you love it!”

“Yeah, but – but what if I would love something else more? What if I only think I like it, but it's just because everyone expects me to and I don't even know how it is to be anyone else?”

“...are you having a midlife crisis at twenty five?”

“Ugh, I'm serious, Zelda!” He ran a hand through his hair. “The old man was always like, go train swordfighting, or go learn the procedure of using the helper engines, and nothing more, and I'm sure he wanted to do a good thing and never yelled _too_ much when I failed, but- Oh, who am I kidding? He'd be much happier if I was like your father!”

“Okay, wait.” She raised a hand. “ _What_? Why would he want you to be like my dad?!”

“Because he's a _genius,_ Zelda! The Hero of Steam! The best enginner Hyrule has! The greatest swordsman! There isn't anything he can't do! I'm pretty sure he's the only engineer in the land who never-” he stumbled over the words that wouldn't come out, “who never had a serious accident, I mean! Dad told me whole stories about him, and he sounded so proud! I just know that he hoped I'd grow up to be like him, and I just – I just know how disappointed he must be right now!” He punched a pillow in frustration.

“'Fonzo, I'm sure he didn't mean it that way! You know he's not very good with that stuff. He just wanted to encourage you, not make you a copy of my dad!”

“You don't understand, Zelda! You can't possibly know what it feels like! I was given _a second name_ after him!”

“And what do you think _mine_ is?” Zelda huffed. “Why would you imagine I don't understand? What, you think I wasn't expected to do anything? That no chancellor ever tried to stuff me into a pretty dress and a closed castle? That nobody's told me they knew better what my fate should be and what little I amounted to otherwise?!”

They glared at each other. Zelda was the first one to break the eye contact and sigh, her anger deflated. “Sorry,” he said. “Sorry, I know, it's not about me right now. And we've been through this before. I understand that you're still hurt about... I shouldn't have lashed out on you.”

“Neither should I.” Ildefonzo rubbed his neck averting her eyes. “Let's... let's just go back to sleep. We have to go to the Tower of Spirits tomorrow.” He waited in silence until Zelda put off the lamp, then added, “It's just... so much happened recently.”

“Sure did.”

“I'm darn tired.”

“We all are,” she said, her thoughts running to the lonely shadow on the graveyard hill.

 


	8. Chapter 8

The morning welcomed them with grey skies and a drizzle. Zelda woke up at eight, a very late hour for an engineer. The first thing she did was absent-mindedly pulling on clothes and the second was eating breakfast, which amounted mostly to her poking the breakfast with a fork.

The third thing was climbing the stairs of the graveyard hill.

Ganondorf had been kneeling in front of the Wind Memorial, his hands resting on his thighs. No sign of the previous night's outburst left. When Zelda approached, his head bowed in thought moved slightly towards her and his eyes opened halfway.

“Forgive me,” she said, “I didn't want to interrupt your prayers.”

“Prayers?” he asked. His voice was low with the kind of calm that only comes after there's no more strength to hold fury. “No god is worth my prayer anymore. I've been... thinking.” He looked at the Memorial again. “Tell me... do you know why this land is called Hyrule?”

“Yeah,” she replied, unsure where the conversation was going. “Every child knows that. There's a legend that when the first people from across the Seas saw a steam machine on the Spirit Tracks, a kind of a proto-train, they asked what made it move. One of the operators answered _boiler_ and the other _fire._ Both were right, of course. But since they both yelled their answers at once and through the noise of the machine, the newly-arrived people understood it as _Hyrule_.”

“This story is a lie. There was another Hyrule.”

“Another?” Zelda tried to wrap her head around the concept. “You mean, before this one?”

“Yes. A kingdom thousands of years old, entire oceans away from here. This land you now call Hyrule is but a poor attempt at its reproduction.”

“Oh wow, seriously?” Zelda said before she could restrain herself. “So... that's where you're from? That other Hyrule was your home?”

Ganondorf kept silent for a long moment. “That kingdom had been sealed under a great sea by the gods' will,” he continued without answering. “Became a broken shell of what it once was. I tried my hand at bringing it back to life and splendor it had known. There was one way only to return it... to gather the Triforce, an ancient golden power, and make a wish on it. I spent centuries searching. I have found the pieces and watched the Triforce reform into one before my very eyes. But I was not the one to touch it first. And the fool that did... wished for the land to be washed away. To be gone forever.” His hands turned into claws gripping material. “As I found myself in this land, I believed it was a chance from fate. What I had to do seemed obvious. If anything could reverse a wish made on the Triforce, it would be only another such wish. But there was something I didn't realize... It was known that the Triforce's and Hyrule's existences were connected, and should the Triforce be destroyed, Hyrule would follow. It turned out the opposite is also true. It's just as the Sage said... there is neither my Hyrule nor a way to bring it back anymore. Everything is lost. And the only pieces of the past that remain... is the Wind Waker and an old pictograph.”

His sight fell on the Memorial and the fake wind-turning baton fitted in its design, then on his hand. Only now Zelda noticed he had been holding the phantom copy of the pictograph, clutching it tightly as if deathly afraid of losing it.

“So you just wanted to save the old Hyrule?” she asked. “If that's true, why would the Hero of Winds try to stop you?”

“Because he was told to. Because it was his destiny... our destiny,” Ganondorf replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Even if we fought it, the fate would come to fruition sooner or later. And the Hero of Winds... he had not fully realized, back then, what he would help to bring about.”

“The Hero of Winds...” Something didn't fit. “Tell me, Ganondorf, the thing Ildefonzo has - the Wind Waker – really belonged to the Hero?”

“Yes.”

“Then there's something I don't understand. If he wanted to get across the ocean on a sailboat, why would he leave something like a wind-controlling baton behind?”

Ganondorf bowed his head. “Tell me, engineer,” he said quietly, “when the lost wanderers on the tracks hear the train whistle, do all of them jump off?”

Zelda didn't answer, but her mind was anything but quiet.

She had heard stories, of course; everyone who would become an engineer did. She heard that sometimes you could only apply the brakes and pray until the train inevitably stopped too late; that sometimes it weren't moinks that refused to move from the path. While she had been lucky enough to avoid it, nobody tried to hide from her that the faithful day would come, eventually. It always did, Ildefonzo told her one of the many times he couldn't sleep. It always did.

“No,” she admitted.

“No,” Ganondorf agreed. “They don't. Because when they already know that the storm is inevitable, they decide to meet it halfway. They yearn to have just one final stand against destiny. One final comfort of choice. Even if the fight they start is one they are destined to lose, it it still better than,” he choked for a second, “than to drown.” A long while he was silent. “Was it because I forced your hand, Hero of Winds?” he asked the morning. “Was it because _he_ rejected your hand? Or was it because you yearned for the past that would not return, and the ropes that bound you had been twisted out of your own melancholy?” He closed his eyes, his hand rising to clutch at his tired face. “Fool,” he breathed. “You fool. You miserable fool.” He stayed this way for a long time, and Zelda thought he wept, but when he uncovered his face again there wasn't a single tear. Ganondorf took a deep breath, regaining his center, then looked at her blinking as if he forgot about her existence. Something in his eyes changed. “Tell me, Zelda,” he started, “Yesterday, we have promised something to each other, haven't we?”

Yes, they did. He promised he would go with her to the Tower of Spirits if she burned the letter... if she... oh no.

She could lie. She probably should lie. But as Ganondorrf looked at her, exhausted and somber, she felt like she owed him at least honesty.

“Ganondorf,” she managed, “I'm... I'm sorry. I've read the letter - what was left of it.” She expected him to stand up, yell at her, maybe even pull out the swords hidden in his sleeves, but he didn't move.

“I know,” he said instead. “As soon as I saw how determined you were to read it, I knew you would find a way to overcome any obstacle I'd try to put in your path. You always do. You are a wise woman, Zelda.”

“Wise?” she repeated in disbelief. “I'm not wise. More like scatterbrained and too curious for my own good. I mean, even with that letter, I wouldn't think of a way to save it. Ildefonzo had to help me. I know I would be gone without him. I don't think I'm ready to be an engineer either.”

“Ah, but Zelda, what you're talking about now - knowing when to withdraw and ask for help, accepting the limits of your knowledge and skill - that had always been a part of your wisdom.”

Silence fell.

“I'm really sorry about that letter,” Zelda said, “I know I promised you to burn it. I understand if you don't want to come with me to the Tower of Spirits now, but-”

“I will go with you,” he replied. “I do not have anywhere else to go. But give me just a while more to think. Just a while more.”

 

\- - -

 

Zelda couldn't focus on anything for the next few hours. While she waited for the evening to come, the time seeemed to slow down to a halt, but she had a weird sense that if she turned her eye away it would suddenly speed up so much she'd miss their mark. She ate an early lunch, read something that didn't require too much brain usage, then assisted Ildefonzo in attaching a novelty device to the front of the Flying Hylian.

“Now that's what I call a moinkcatcher,” he said patting a triangular steel frame. “I wanted to try it earlier, but there wasn't really time, what with your exam and all. It can come in handy. Hitting a moink shouldn't be so harsh on the train now, but that doesn't mean you don't have to watch your air, alright, Zelda? ...Zelda? Are you listening?”

“Yeah,” she muttered. “Sure. Watch the air.” Through the window she could see the clouds turning dark grey. They didn't look that menacing, but apprehension still seized her thinking, like something terrible was going to happen any second now.

“Glad you got that. Okay, I'll manage the next part, you can go now, prepare yourself for the road. Remember we're leaving Aboda at eight hundred, on the dot.”

Zelda nodded and headed down the tracks leading to the hall's exit. Fresh air hit her with the smell of moist earth, a silent memory of rain. They should check their sand so the wheels wouldn't slip, she thought following the tracks. And they should take more cannonballs, just in case. Ildefonzo always made sure they had water and coal, but it wouldn't hurt to remind him about extra kerosene for the headlights. Something to drink for the road would be nice too.

Before she noticed, she had walked down the tracks almost to the fork in the road by Aboda's boundary. She quickly got away from the rails; it wouldn't do them any good if she got hit by a train just before they were supposed to leave.

The clouds moved slowly with the wind, from time to time covering the sun and casting the entire world darker. In front of her the Spirit Tracks snaked across the fields, tangling together and vanishing in the distance. The giant Tower of Spirits was barely a needle on the horizon from here. Somehow it seemed further away than usual.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a strange sight. Something much smaller than a train moved down the tracks from the north. It came closer and Zelda realized it was a draisine. It had only one man on board – a very determined man, judging by the impressive speed he mantained. A hundred feet behind him something else rushed their way, and this object Zelda didn't recognize: it was round and blue, but the colour was hard to notice because of the intense orange flames that bursted out of its interior through many grated holes. It looked like a small firebox that had somehow run away from its locomotive.

As Zelda watched in surprise, the draisine came closer and the man noticed her, his eyes widening. He threw a nervous glance towards the round fiery thing rapidly getting closer, jumped off and with a stumble from losing speed ran towards Zelda, and in that instant she recognized his clothes and a pictograph slung across his neck: it was a gunzel, the very same who collected her signature in Papuchia the day before.

“Get down!” he yelled and tackled her to the ground.

An explosion shattered the world. The earth shook as several big objects whistled over their heads and landed a few feet away, the echoes of the impact ringing in her ears. It took a long time until the world fell silent again, and even longer until the gunzel apparently deemed it safe to stand up freeing her from under him.

Zelda looked speechless at the now empty tracks. The fiery object had vanished completely, and what was left of the draisine lay strewn in many different places, some of them a seemingly improbable distance from the rails.

“Sorry, miss engineer,” the gunzel said, the hand he was saluting with trembling slightly. “Didn't mean to lead it here. I was going home and it took me by surprise.”

“What... was that?” Zelda managed to choke out.

“A Dark Train, miss. I think we'll be safe here – they stick to the main lines and don't go for the stations... unless they chase you there, I reckon.” He shuddered.

“They? There's _more_ of them?”

“Many more in the fields, miss. They started appearing this morning, nobody knows why. The engineers everywhere are going nuts. They say that while it's nothing compared to what was happening the last time the Dark Trains attacked, nobody should attempt to drive through the Forest Realm until it gets better.” He glanced back at the fields. “It doesn't look like it'll be any time soon.”

Zelda cursed. “Why now? We have to be at the Tower of Spirits at midnight!”

“You can't go there, miss engineer!” the gunzel gasped. “You saw how powerful these are! It's far too dangerous!”

“I know, but we have to get to the Tower of Spirits no matter what it takes! I bet these trains are the Demon King's fault. The seal must be getting weaker. If we stay here, it's only going to get worse.”

“Then – then is there any way I can help?”

“I don't think so, unless you can tell me which tracks these Dark Trains roam exactly.” She sighed when he shook his head. “I thought so. Darn... you're from Papuchia, right?”

“Yes, miss engineer.”

“Then I think you should try to get home before it gets any worse. We'll manage somehow.”

Somehow. Good Spirits, not an hour earlier she'd been worried about _moinks_.

Ildefonzo didn't look happy when he was told about the Dark Trains, and almost immediately threw himself into preparing the Flying Hylian for the road, probably so he didn't have to think too much about what they were up against. Zelda had never seen him take such care with oiling every little part of the locomotive.

Around six in the evening they heated up the Flying Hylian enough so they could get her outside the hall and start charging the air fully. She was coming back to life much too slowly for Zelda's liking, but rushing it could end up badly, so they were forced to wait while the locomotive huffed and hissed at the afternoon.

“Looking pretty pale there, Zelda,” Ildefonzo commented checking the wheels.

“What a surprise,” she muttered. “I don't like the idea of trying to navigate through hordes of mobile bombs.”

“It'll be fine. We just have to be careful and not make any stupid mistakes, and-”

“Ildefonzoooo!”

They both looked at the tracks in surprise. Mr. Rodd had been running in their direction holding something under his arm, his train visible much further away; it must have arrived when they were busy with their own engine. Mr. Rodd stopped by them and caught a breath. “Hey, Ildefonzo! You won't guess! I have something for you from the Castle!”

“Yeah, yeah, what is it? I'm kinda busy right now. I should...” His voice trailed off, because he was presented with a bundle of green clothes and a sheath hiding a sword. “Is this... don't tell me... it can't be...”

“Why, of course! It's the official Castle Guard uniform. I know you're surprised, but listen, there's no tell when the evil forces strike all out. You saw what's happening on the fields, right? Demons for miles. If they try to attack the Queen, we'll need everyone we can find to help protect her. Wear this and get to the Castle as soon as you can. Every important Guard member's already there.”

“Then why aren't _you_ there?” came out of Zelda's mouth before her reason could stop her. “Sir,” she added quickly, but Mr. Rodd had already shot her a cold look.

“For your information, I would gladly spill my blood for the Queen and Hyrule, and my tortured heart is breaking at the thought that I'm unable to. Alas, the cruel fate chose me to be a messenger instead, and to carry the news to the furthest corners of the land. It's such a pity I won't be able to make it back in time to fight alongside everyone else.” He stared straight into her eyes for a long moment before shifting his attention back to Ildefonzo. “Well? What do you say?”

Ildefonzo shook his head. “I have to decline. I see the situation, but I'm not one of the Guards. Besides, my apprentice must get to the Tower of Spirits and-”

“Then let her go! What's the problem? She should get there by herself just fine! After all, she passed the exam in a completely legitimate way, _didn't she_? And you - sure, you're not an official Guard, but you trained sword fighting, and that's already making you more qualified than most of the men in this land. In fact...” He shuffled closer, putting one arm around him, which was quite a feat considering Ildefonzo's height. “I had an eye on you, and I say you'd be just great. We can both profit if you go there from my recommendation. I help you, you help me, eh? This is your big chance, boy, perhaps the only way to get in the serious business. Just imagine: a salary you're worthy of, a warm spot in the Roundhouse... that old little _misadventure_ wiped away from the records. Besides, you're the old Guard Captain Alfonzo's son, aren't you? Just imagine how proud of you he would be. Come on. Treat this like a second chance from fate.”

Ildefonzo kept silent for a very long time, his stare fixed on the green clothes. “So you really think you can wipe something like that away.” he asked quietly.

“Ha, of course. There are methods.”

“You really think you can just run and hide and it will somehow fix itself, huh. That if you don't turn to face it, it will just disappear.”

“...pardon?”

Suddenly, Ildefonzo's expression turned from unsure to determined. He looked at the faraway tracks. “Mr. Rodd,” he started with a confident tone, “you drove here with the Central Express over there?”

“Eh? Yes, I did. Why are you-”

“Then I want you to remove it.” He shoved the clothes back into Mr. Rodd's arms with more force than it was necessary.

“What?” Mr. Rodd stumbled under the shove.

“Your train is blocking the tracks, and my apprentice and I have to get to the Tower of Spirits. So get back to the Castle, Mr. Rodd, or whenever else you wish. You're in the way.”

“I'm in- I'm in the-” He grew much redder in the face. “Ildefonzo, you're forgetting yourself! Did the girl bought your compliance as well?! My train can stop anywhere I want! I am your superior!”

“What a coincidence, right now the Flying Hylian is lawfully superior as well. It means that as we speak, the Central Express is sitting there commiting a crime. It would be a shame if somebody caught her in the act.” He moved closer, leaning over him, and judging by Mr. Rodd's face, he only now realized just how imposing Ildefonzo's frame was. “What are you looking at? Go.”

Ildefonzo stayed in place glaring at Mr. Rodd even as the man ran back, screaming something in the vein of “you'll pay for this!” and jumped into his train. The Central Express reversed all the way to the crossing and rushed towards Papuchia, away from the fields. Only then Ildefonzo's facade wavered and he hid his face in his hands.

“I'm dead,” he groaned. “I am so fucking dead. You don' mess with some people, you just don't. The management and the guys at the Rounhouse are going to kill me. _Dad's_ going to kill me when he comes back.”

“You know what? I think he'll be proud,” Zelda said. “That was really brave.”

Ildefonzo scratched his head in embarassment. “Thanks, I guess. But pleasantries aside, we have something to do. Let's finish preparing the big girl.” He thought for a moment. “We just need the air fully charged, and check a few more things, and - oh, right, is the ghost guy here? Go get him. Because, the gauntlet track or whatever.”

Zelda nodded and ran towards the hill. When she arrived on top, Ganondorf had been standing on the edge looking down with furrowed brow. But unlike she had expected, his sight was not on the fields; it fell on the platform, where Ildefonzo was hustling around the Flying Hylian. Zelda cleared her throat. “You're not spying on us, are you?” she asked.

“No. But just for one fleeting moment, I thought I felt...” He fiddled with the letter in his hand, but then shook his head as if trying to clear his mind. “No matter. All I can sense now are the waves of dark magic in the fields.”

“Yeah, about that... I'm afraid we have to embark sooner than we thought. Come with me.”

Ganondorf followed her down the hill without question.

And finally, finally the Flying Hylian was ready. Smoke puffed out of her chimney, her insides boiling with determination, the metal almost bursting with impatience to get on the road.

Zelda was about to climb into the cab after Ildefonzo, but in this exact moment someone stuttered, “Ex... excuse me? Miss engineer?”

Three young gunzels gathered awkwardly by the platform. One of them, the one from Papuchia, came up to Zelda clearing his throat. “Please take this!” He passed her a piece of paper. “We managed to get in contact with friends from up north and map how some of the Dark Trains are moving and which tracks are mostly safe! And this...” A bag was passed as well. “...is from mister Linebeck. Bites sized for the road. When we told mister Linebeck it's for you he even gave us a five rupee discount, and for his standards that's practically free. We know it's not much, but we hope it helps!” He saluted. “We know we can count on you to stop this madness, miss engineer!”

Oh Spirits, no, she was _not_ just about to cry over a bag of lunch. “Thank you,” she said blinking just a tad too often. “I really appreciate it.”

“It's a pleasure, miss engineer!” The gunzel scurried off to join the rest, his cheeks bright red.

Zelda suspected that this whole thing was happening only because she belonged to a rare breed of engineers that was young, conventionally pretty and – well – female (and from a rich family, in Linebeck's case), but still, looking at the bottom of the map where somebody very enthusiastic scribbled _Good luck !!!!!_ , she could feel a light of hope shine through any doubt she still had.

“Alright,” she said, “let's do this.”

 


	9. Chapter 9

The setting sun shone from behind the Flying Hylian, falling onto the gauges and meters with a red glare, sliding to the side when the tracks curved north. The road began, but no one could tell how it would end. Zelda only hoped they would manage to get as far as they could before meeting any Dark Trains – after that, well, they would need some luck. But for now she didn't let it poison her mind.

“The road is empty,” she noticed. “I guess nobody else would risk driving. At least that's out of the way. We just have to watch out for the Dark Trains now. The problem it, even with the map we only know their possible patterns, and not the exact positions, so we still have to be on our guard.”

“One of them is close and moving fast,” Ganondorf said.

She glanced at the red sprite. “How do you know that?”

“They have a certain energy to them. It's easy to sense.”

“Great! Tell me when you spot more. Hey, 'Fonzo, Ganondorf says a Dark Train's close! It's coming from...”

“From the right.”

“...from the right!”

“Got it!” Ildefonzo fell back to the tender and their cannon.

The Dark Train came from the right indeed. It rushed towards them, but before it could get close it jumped once, twice and exploded by itself, sending a rain of red sparks around. Zelda gasped in surprise. She turned to Ildefonzo to ask if he'd seen that, and found him staring at the Wind Waker in his hand.

“...well then,” he said, “I guess strategic air-compressing works too.”

Zelda nodded to him, took a moment to check the readings, and turned to the red sprite again. “Ganondorf, are there any more coming?”

“They're still far away.”

“Far away. Alright.” She tried to unfold the map, but it fell from her hands. She dove for it, and as soon as she stood straight she had to brake to get them through a curve, and with Ildefonzo in the back she had to watch out for their fire too and suddenly she wasn't sure about the whole idea. At all. But it was fine, she repeated to herself, it was going to be just fine. She just needed to focus and check their gauges, and try to look at the map again, and watch out for the road, and...

...and oh Spirits, she was doing this again, wasn't she?

“'Fonzo,” she shouted waving with the map to get his attention, “I can't do everything at once! Come help me!”

“Sure! You want me to look at the map?”

Her pride was stabbing and scratching at her throat, but she swallowed it even then. “No! I want you to drive!” Before Ildefonzo could get out of his stupor, she continued, “And don't try to argue with me! I'm not nearly as experienced as you, and let's just say it's not the best time to learn! Take the engineer's place, and I'll take the map – and the shovel! Maybe I can't drive as well as you, but if there's one thing I'm better at, it's right-handed firing!”

Ildefonzo looked at her like she had turned into a moink. “I... don't believe any engineer said anything quite like that before.”

“Just come here and drive!”

They switched places, and somehow, it didn't bother her nearly as much as she thought it would. She looked at the map. “Okay, let's go left at the next crossing, there shouldn't be a lot of the Fark Trains there. Ganondorf?”

“Still far away.”

“He said they're still far away.”

“Ah, and a part of the tracks seems to be missing.”

“And a part of the tracks-” She stopped and gaped at the red sprite. “ _What?_ ”

“The stream of light magic that always runs along the tracks is broken, here,” the red sprite flew towards the map in her hands and pointed at one of the side roads. “I can only assume it's because they were destroyed.”

“Oh, great. Just great. 'Fonzo, I don't want to stress you out, but the tracks are disappearing! Don't worry, Ganondorf can tell us where!”

Ildefonzo used what seemed like his entire vocabulary of curses.

A few minutes later more of the Dark Trains appeared, and Zelda got a few with the cannon before Ildefonzo got the rest with the Wind Waker he was still holding. Then the road was silent again, then another wave came. And so it went through the rest of the ride, only with time the periods of peace became much more scarcer. The night fell over the fields, and they were still stuck in the south, having to drive around the segments that didn't exist anymore.

Somehow, in all of this, Zelda felt both very tired and very energized.

“Ganondorf, how many?” she asked glancing at the gauges.

“Two on the parallel track, a hundred feet away.”

“Two on the parallel, got that! 'Fonzo, just go straight, I'll get them with the cannon!”

“Right away!”

As Zelda whipped around the cab, circling between the tender and the firebox with the shovel, she wondered at how natural it all felt; how Ildefonzo listened to her without question, how Ganondorf always answered when she asked – how their cooperation, when they all had their tasks to do, made everything look maybe not easy, but not hard either.

They reached the middle parts of the empty fields. For some time the Flying Hylian ran without interruption, at great speed, and Zelda couldn't shake off the feeling that the locomotive was _happy_. Since her construction she'd been used mainly for training, without any impressive load to bear or a distance to run, oftentimes left inside for much too long. It wasn't her nature. She wasn't a tiny passenger train with pastel-coloured cars, happy with an hour of work. She was an untamable freight engine. She was power _._ She wanted to scale mountains, run through countries and reach speeds unknown to any living being. And that fearful night, with an empty road ahead and a full tender at her back, she finally had a chance.

The Flying Hylian spread her wings, and Zelda flew with her.

But the road was not all joy. The Dark Trains didn't intend to give up easily even when blown up en masse. If anything, their numbers seemed to be rising. Their encounters quickly started to feel old, not to mention that it forced them to trackback, loop around and take longer routes. It was already eleven, and they were maybe three fourth of the way through the fields. Zelda leaned out of the cab to look and judge the distance. They weren't close to any station, the faraway red lights of the Dark Trains seemed to laugh at them, and the Tower of Spirits – the Tower of Spirits...

“Ildefonzo?”

“Yeah?”

“Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Tower of Spirits supposed to have a pointy bit on top?”

Ildefonzo leaned out of the cab, looked up and cursed.

“Yeah, that's what I thought.”

“It's not... disappearing, is it?”

“I don't know, but it's best we hurry. Full steam ahead!”

It was already after midnight when, at long last, the Flying Hylian stopped on the turntable in the Tower of Spirits. Anjean had been already waiting for them, rubbing her wrinkled hands anxiously .

“Sorry we're late!” Zelda practically jumped out of the cab, Ganondorf manifesting into his full form to her side. “The Dark Trains held us up for a while, but we're ready to climb the Tower now!”

“Good. The door had already opened.” Anjean grimaced as something exploded outside and briefly shook the room. “But I don't know how long the Tower will remain standing if the Dark Trains keep attacking... my magic can't hold all of them out for long. If only we could stop them somehow. If only-- excuse me, young man, but what are you doing?”

Zelda turned to see Ildefonzo had closed the cab of the Flying Hylian and now moved frantically by the controls, as if in preparation to drive away. “Turn the train around, Anjean!” he shouted. “Now!”

“Alright, alright. Don't scream at me.”

“What are you doing, Ildefonzo?” Zelda asked confused when the turntable moved with a groan. “You can't go back to Aboda with all the Dark Trans in the way! Not by yourself! And there's gonna be a storm too!”

“I'm not going back to Aboda!”

“What?!”

The turntable stopped, the train facing the way it had just come from. “You have to climb the Tower, but if those things keep attacking, there won't be a Tower to climb anymore! I'll try and stop them!”

“Are you _completely out of your mind_?!”

“I'll be fine, okay? I can stop them! I have the Wind Waker! And... and don't you try and argue with me, Zelda!”

“But...!” She tried to run closer, but was stopped by an arm raised in front of her, the long dark sleeve effectively making a wall. Ganondorf wasn't looking at her, but focused completely at Ildefonzo. His eyes were glinting with something new.

Before Zelda could react, Ildefonzo had already pulled the throttle and the train started to move. “Be careful!” she shouted.

“Don't worry, I'll be fine! Go!” With a shriek of the whistle Ildefonzo drove away, pulling full steam ahead. Zelda watched the Flying Hylian disappear in the distance, then took a deep breath and turned around.

“That's it.” She strode towards the giant stairs. “We're going and sealing this thing _right now._

“Zelda, wait,” Anjean called. “I understand your hurry, but you're not ready yet. Tell me, how good are you with a bow?”

“A bow? I took lessons when I was a kid, but it was a long time ago.”

“Good enough.” She presented to Zelda an ornamented bow and a quiver. “This is the Bow of Light. The Light Arrows shot from it will help you should the tower host danger. I was afraid the weakened seal may let some evil slip through, so I prepared a full quiver of them in advance. Oh, don't look so worried. You have archery in your blood. You just have to listen to its rhythm. Now, the Phantoms are confused and will probably try to attack you. In this case remember: their backs hide weak spots. If you shoot one with a Light Arrow, you will throw the Phantoms out of their bodies...” She moved her gaze to Ganondorf. “...and another spirit will be able to take their place as the armour's host. Do not worry, the Phantoms will not perish, for ghosts protected with bodies are hard to kill. However... If any disembodied malevolent spirit was shot with a Light Arrow in their weak spot, they would be instantly destroyed. And I do mean: _any_.” She looked at Ganondorf seriously. “Are we clear?”

“Crystal,” he hissed.

“Wait!” Zelda piped in. “Wait wait wait! Do you mean I may as well kill him by accident?!”

“You should be fine as long as you don't actively try to aim at either of his weakspots. The gems, in case you wonder.”

“Well... fine.” She pulled the quiver on her back and grasped the bow.

“Now go, and may all the Spirits of Good smile on your journey.” Zelda nodded, turned around and approached the staircase, but as she took the first step, she was interrupted again. “Just one last thing. Ganondorf...”

They looked over their arms. Anjean stood turned to them with her back, as if suddenly unable to face them. “Long time ago, my apprentice asked me... _When you realize that your wish will never be granted, what do you do then?_ What answer should I give him? What did he want to hear?”

“Do you expect me to be able to tell you?” Ganondorf asked.

Anjean bowed her head. “No,” she replied quietly. “I just had the last speck of hope, that perhaps...”

“I am not him, sage.”

“I know,” she sighed. “It is true that the spirit is resilient, and can come back in the ways most unexpected... but it is not _his_ time yet. I had known all along, deep inside, but I was too stubborn to believe it. It is indeed in our nature to weave beautiful lies to ourselves even if we know the simple truth. So hard it is to accept something we love is still gone. Ah, but it is a peculiar thing...” she raised her head. “Once I accept and let go, my soul is weighted with sadness, yet I feel at ease...” She held silent for a few seconds. “Go now. I'm not holding you anymore.”

Ganondorf nodded even if she couldn't see him, and floated up the stairs. Zelda followed suit. They climbed in silence, and only after the door to the first floor closed behind them she asked, “What did she even mean?”

“Something you should not be too curious about,” Ganondorf answered. “Now stay on your guard. I sense a presence of a Phantom.”

 


	10. Chapter 10

The narrow hallway was lightened only by scarce torches, both its ends drowning in unsettling darkness. Zelda didn't like the Tower of Spirits already.

“Prepare an arrow,” Ganondorf instructed floating ahead.

Easier said than done, Zelda thought taking the first arrow out of the quiver and staring at it in confusion. It looked like any other in the world. How was she supposed to... But as soon as she placed the arrow in its rightful spot in the bow, it suddenly felt obvious. A heady feeling rushed out from her chest and down her arms, leaving goosebumps in its wake. Faint light flown from her fingertips, growing stronger by the second and enveloping the arrow in golden warmth, making it shine even brighter than the torches.

Oh. Okay then.

With the Light Arrow at the ready Zelda crept down the hallway. She tried not to notice a rhytmical sound coming from somewhere in the room, a heavy thump, thump, thump like steps of a giant, but it was pretty hard considering they seemed to be coming closer.

They approached the place where the hallway made a sharp turn. Zelda hesitated, glanced behind her and with relief noticed no monster managed to sneak up on her. But that relief was short-lived, because as soon as she looked ahead again, the source of the steps emerged from behind the corner.

A huge suit of armour moved with jerky steps, each movement a bit too stilted and at too weird of an angle to be made by a human. The Phantom stopped, moved his horned helmet and looked at her with two red specks of light inside it. It took a step towards her. Zelda answered with a careful step back.

“Uh, Ganondorf...” she started, looked around and found him gone.

The Phantom thumped towards her, raising a sword, and not even the sight of the shining bow seemed to bother him. Would a shot anywhere else than in the back incapitate him in any way? Fortunately, she didn't have to check, because in this moment Ganondorf reappeared on the other side of the hall, just behind the Phantom's back. “Hello,” he said.

The Phantom stopped with a clang, turned to him and left his back perfectly unguarded.

Zelda aimed and took a shot. At first she was afraid it didn't work - the Phantom just jerked and reached for its back in surprise – but then light burst out from where the arrow had hit, so bright Zelda had to shield her eyes. When she looked again, the armour was still there. But something had changed; it stood proud and somehow more taller, clenching and relaxing its fist experimentally, making a few mock swipes with the sword. When he turned around, in the dephts of the helmet shone golden specks of light.

“Ah,” the Phantom said in Ganondorf's voice, “much better. Let us go.”

From there on the road seemed almost too easy. They stumbled across other Phantoms, but Ganondorf wielded the sword without any difficulty, soon reducing them to scrap metal.

“Wow,” Zelda said when yet another armour fell down in defeat, “I didn't really expect you to know how to fight – I mean, in full armour and a heavy sword and all. Shouldn't you have more troubles if you didn't have a body like this before?”

“I had, in a way,” he replied. “Long time ago, I had a Phantom of my own. A part of my spirit molded into a warrior.”

“What happened to him?”

“A Light Arrow from the Hero of Winds' bow. The sage spoke truth when she told you about them vanquishing evil.”

Zelda gripped her bow tighter, as if any moment it could get out of control and shoot Ganondorf by itself.

They climbed, and the number of obstacles grew – from something simple like the floor being almost completely dark, to things much more ridiculous. Zelda hoped she would never again have to get across a pit of lava by means of clinging desperately to a suit of armour stepping straight through said pit of lava. The enemies seemed almost laughable by comparison, especially with Ganondorf by her side. With his sword skills, quick thinking and sheer size of the armour, Ganondorf had little trouble, but sometimes Zelda helped him finish the fight with a well-aimed Light Arrow. They didn't have time to prolong the battles.

The Tower shook slightly from time fo time, and Zelda found her worried thoughts running back to Ildefonzo, but she forced herself to focus on their task. After all, he must have been succesful; the Tower was very much still standing.

As they climbed higher and higher, oftentimes they found themselves walk in silence. During one of these breaks, Ganondorf asked out of nowhere, “Why did you become an engineer?”

Zelda looked at the back of his armour, which she did most of the time in the Tower, considering its sheer size filled most of her field of view. “Why are you asking all of a sudden?”

“Consider it a payment for your own curiosity.”

She guessed that was only fair. “Well, my dad is the Great Road Foreman of Engines. Trains are his life. When I was a kid he taught me about them a lot and even took me on a few rides in the cab. I remember he held me up so I could pull the whistle cord. Then, when I was twelve, uh... stuff happened, and I made the decision. I knew dad had trained under Mr. Alfonzo from Aboda – that's Ildefonzo's father – so I caught the first train there and asked him to take me for an apprentice. He was pretty shocked, to say the least. He wanted to drive me back to the Castle instantly, but his wife insisted I at least stayed to eat something. Guess I must've looked pretty down. I spent all of the dinner trying to convince Mr. Alfonzo to train me, but he just glared at me. I didn't really expect anything, to be honest, since he's old and doesn't want to bother with students anymore. Finally we finished eating, he stood up, and I prepared to be thrown out, but he only went to the other room and returned with a whole mountain of books in his arms – mechanics, hydro- and termodynamics, rulebooks, everything – and whammed all of them on the table and said “Zero four thirty by the train shack”, and stomped out.” She chuckled. “That's how it started, pretty much. Mr. Alfonzo showed me the ropes for the first few months, but after that he couldn't stay in Aboda for long, and dad couldn't either – you know, they're both pretty important and have to deal with the international negotiations and all – so he passed me to Ildefonzo.”

“Hm. He must have been extremely confident in his son's abilities if he trusted him with something as important as protecting a princess.”

“Yeah,” she replied automatically, then blinked a few times when the sense got to her. She never thought this way about it. “Hey, why are you so happy all of a sudden?”

“Oh? You're seeing things. Now get the next arrow.”

They had to take a break from that conversation to defeat a few more enemies, but as soon as the last one fell in defeat, Ganondorf asked a question Zelda hoped not to hear. “What happened when you were twelve?”

She sighed. “I was supposed to become a princess. I mean, become one _for serious_. Turn into an appropriate throne descendant. Start the political career, make important decisions, sit in the Castle and not think about such frivolous things like driving trains. When my twelfth birthday was coming up, I got a pink dress to wear at the ceremony. You know, like the one my sister has. It's technically an insignia. So I was in my room, the dress on my bed, and... and something broke.”

“But you have thought about coming back.”

“...Yes. I still do. But they are just thoughts. I'm never coming back.” Her voice came out much more quiet than she wanted. “I know that it's pretty selfish of me, and even if dad says he's proud of me, he still risks a lot letting me be an engineer. And... I'm still afraid that something happens and I'll have to take the throne, and forget about everything else I might have done, and... now that I think about it... I was always so sure that maybe if I quickly pass the exam and become an extremely good engineer, an asset in the field, if the management has enough reasons to keep me... then perhaps I won't have to come back, you know?”

Ganondorf didn't say anything to that. Zelda felt this sudden silence would suffocate her if she let it grow, so she continued.

“You know, in the Castle there is a stained glass of the first Queen, the one I'm named Tetra after. You had to see it, it's right in the throne room. The Queen's still a girl, and in her pirate clothes, and she looks so brave, and cool, and... happy. But I can't stand looking at it anymore.” She lowered her sight. “Because I know what happened. I know that she put on the dress, became a princess, and forgot about sailing. It's even in that first paper story. You saw it. She could do nothing else but stay at the sidelines, let others fight and make shocked expressions at everything. It's just-- _ow!_ ” Zelda rubbed her nose that had met with the back of the Phantom's armour. “Hey, maybe warn me before--”

“This story is a lie.”

Zelda's hands stilled. “What?”

Ganondorf turned to her, the golden eyes suddenly seeming much brighter. “When the battle unveiled, she did not stay at the sidelines. She refused to watch idly. She took up a bow, not unlike the one you're holding, and fought alongside the Hero of Winds. If I recall correctly, the dress didn't seem to hold her back.” He turned back to the hall and moved forward, and after a few seconds Zelda followed him slowly, lost in thought.

They talked more after that, but to be fair, it felt more like Ganondorf monologued and she asked questions, most of which would not be answered. Zelda could tell he omitted some very important topics – the whole Demon King thing, for example – but the only thing she could force out of him was a very telling silence. Sometimes he blatantly changed the topic. Instead of something about his family, she heard about a few bulblin-like races that worked under him, about a giant bird that he had been companions with, and about a black horse he once had. (Zelda knew about horses, they had lived in the land long time ago, but Ganondorf had to explain how it was even possible to ride one. It could sound like a treat only to someone who hadn't been around trains their entire life, Zelda decided.)

The Tower didn't seem to end. It felt like ages since they entered it, and if not for the coal powder on her clothes, Zelda would seriously think the entire day was only a dream. They were on yet another floor, that could have been the thirtieth or the fiftieth, Zelda could no longer tell, but her legs started to protest against any more stairs. They have just struck down another warrior with help of a Light Arrow. How many did she use already? She tried to focus and count, but quickly decided there wasn't a point in bothering with that, for sure she couldn't have used more than half. Could have been worse. Could have been... she lost her train of thought, stumbled and had to brace on the wall. The floor suddenly looked very comfortable.

No, Zelda told herself and pushed away from the wall, pacing quickly to catch up with Ganondorf. No time to be tired. Ildefonzo relied on her, the entire Kingdom relied on her, she felt like she should be in peak condition and jump up the stairs with a happy song on her lips. But after the grueling five-hour drive, after climbing tens of floors of the Tower, after traversing countless spike pits and lakes of lava – _lakes of lava_ , for Spirits sake! - her eyes were shutting by themselves. It had to be at least two or three in the morning. She was hanging awake only by focusing on Ganondorf's heavy steps and his voice.

“I have not seen what the bulblins of this land are capable of,” he was saying in the middle of yet another very one-sided dialogue, “but at least in their shape they are similar to the bokoblins I knew. If they are anything like them, it would be wise to let them try their hand. The bokoblins were fine craftsmen and could operate any machine or invent a new one.”

Zelda chose this moment to sit down. Only for a second, she told herself, and then she'd be up and going again.

“A steam engine would prove easy to learn for them,” Ganondorf continued. “The ones under my care had created and mantained much more with much less, searchlights that saw for yards and submarines that swam for miles. They would...” He looked at her. “Why did you stop? Is something the matter?”

“Oh, it's nothing, don't worry. I'm fine. I'm...” She stopped when she realized what she was doing and sighed. “No. The truth is I'm not. I need to rest. Just a few minutes.”

“Very well,” he said, and Zelda didn't even notice when she nodded off.

She certainly noticed the awakening, though, because after the first few confusing seconds she realized she was being held over a metal arm seven feet from the ground.

“Wa-wait!” she protested. “Put me down!”

Ganondorf stopped and helped her to the ground. It could be her imagination, but the golden eyes seemed amused.

“What are you doing?!”

“You fell asleep, so I took charge. You missed but twenty minutes. And, ah, three floors.”

Zelda stared. “You carried me through rooms full of monsters?!”

“Of course not. I ventured ahead and cleared the floors first.”

“You could just wake me up!”

“...Yes. I could.” There was an emotion in his voice that would probably be much easier to recognize wasn't the helmet expressionless.

“Well.” She massaged her temples and reached to straighten her bow and quiver. “At least I'm wide awake now.... oh. Oh no.” She pulled the quiver off her back, but no matter how hard she looked, it contained only three arrows. In her tiredness she hadn't even noticed when she used them all. She slumped down and sighed.

“Hey, Ganondorf?” she started quietly. “Can I ask you for something?”

“What is it?”

“I'm... not really good at keeping track of things when I'm stressed. So if you think I'm about to waste arrows... please tell me, alright?”

She was thankful that Ganondorf didn't comment on it, but simply nodded.

It turned out that maybe the three arrows would not be necessary after all; just one rather empty floor more and they emerged outside, on a flight of spiral stairs encircling the last part of the Tower.

A distant thunder rolled. Zelda looked up and droplets of rain hit against her face. While they had been inside the Tower, the clouds had grown black and it had started to drizzle, and the wind blew cold into her very bones. Night stretched before them throughout the fields, gloom under the unseen sky, and Zelda wondered if the full moon would still work for the seal if you couldn't even see it behind the heavy clouds – and then something else caught her attention: down on the fields, in the distance, there moved a lonely shape with tiny specks of light on the front. She wasn't sure how he even managed to notice it in the dark; it seemed like her eyes fell just on the right spot by themselves. Her heart beat faster when she realized what she was seeing.

“Ganondorf, look!” she shouted. “It's the Flying Hylian! And I can't see one Dark Train! Ildefonzo really did it! He really-”

Something resembling an air horn low as thunder resounded through the night. Only now Zelda noticed that the darkness of the fields held not still; a part of it, a giant shape like a grim black train moved through them not partaining to any known tracks, parallel to the Flying Hylian as though they were locked in a race. But then a light flashed on the Flying Hylian - their cannon – and it became obvious that the trains were battling.

When Zelda was staring at the clash in horror, a massive gauntlet caught her arm and pulled her up the stairs. “Don't get distracted!” Ganondorf shouted.

“But-”

“The Hero will be fine! We have yet to reach the top and strengthen the seal!”

Before Zelda could think, she was tapped with the flat of the giant sword, which sent her stumbling up the stairs, trying to ignore the burning in her legs, with heavy footsteps of Ganondorf following her. On the nearest landing she had to catch a breath. The footsteps caught up with her, but suddenly she heard something entirely different: a clanging of many pieces of metal falling to the ground in chaos. When she turned around, Ganondorf was standing in his usual transparent self over a sad heap of broken armour.

“It appears the bodies of the Phantoms cannot withstand being so far away from the tower's interior's magic,” he said stepping over the horned helmet. “We're almost there.”

The last flight of stairs led them to the round rooftop, once shaded by a sharp roof, now bared underneath the night. The torches stuck in many holders at the edge did their best to disperse the darkness. A stone construct that had to be the Demon King's altar rose in the middle. Looking at the decorative eyes on both its sides, Zelda realized she had no idea exactly _how_ to strengthen the seal. Anjean had told her it would become obvious, but...

Fortunately, as soon as she came close enough, golden light of magic flown on its own from her hands onto the altar, dripped down its edges, enveloped it whole in a glow. Then something changed in the air – and the light dissipated gently. Zelda withdrew, but for a few seconds more the power still coursed through her, making her feel safe and right before dimming.

“Did that do it?” she asked, turning to Ganondorf. “That did it, right?”

But Ganondorf's expression was that of seriousness.

A droning noise vibrated through the night. Zelda recognized it, yet hoped that she was mistaken. She stepped closer to the edge of the Tower and looked at the fields, hoping that not – but there it was. The giant black train still moved at large, not only that, she spotted many red sparks that had to be the smaller Dark Trains. No sight of any other light.

“No!” she cried aloud. “The Flying Hylian... no! There's no way! I've strengthened the damn seal! Why did nothing change?!”

“That is because, Princess Tetra Zelda of Hyrule,"a dark voice resounded behind her, _“_ strengthening the seal won't help you if what it held prisoner is already free. _”_

 


	11. Chapter 11

It looked like nothing Zelda had ever seen before. The other side of the altar was swarmed with blue glowing smoke. Before her eyes it twisted into a shape of a four-legged beast; claws and teeth grew out sharp as knives, long horns protruded from its head. The eyes opened with a glint of red and gold.

“Why the surprise, Your Highness?” the beast spoke. “Do you not recognize me? Do you not know Malladus the Demon King? Ah, but I suppose someone like you wouldn't – a Princess foolish enough to fall for such obvious a trap...” He moved his sight to glaring Ganondorf. “And you... I know who you are as well, Ganon. We have been a part of the same powerful being once. We must be still connected, in a way. When I used my magic to slowly, decade after decade, slip out from under the seal unnoticed, that magic traveled far and by pure accident allowed you the same...” His grin had decidedly too many sharp teeth. “And now you have fullfilled your destiny by bringing me the Princess.”

“Destiny?” Ganondorf repeated in a dangerously low voice. He raised his head and stuck his chest forward, suddenly seeming much taller. “I do not abide by any destiny anymore.”

Malladus chuckled. “Do you not? The only reason you were brought to this land, your entire purpose, was to lure the Princess to me. Everything you've done led to this very moment. Surely, it must have been fat. How else would you call the fact that I had been imprisoned under a land that would one day host the blood I need in order to be revived? My return had been long destined, and it would be pointless to oppose it.” His monstrous eyes moved to Zelda. “Let me show you.”

He moved towards her, fast. Zelda backed off sharply rising her bow and shooting, one arrow, another, but in an instant Malladus was by her and a giant paw hit her side. She hit the stone floor many feet further, wind getting knocked out of her. She expected terrible pain, but to her surprise none showed up and she was able to stand up quickly; it seemed that Malladus didn't do nearly as much as he wanted with the blow.

Then she looked at the scene in front of her and discovered that, in fact, Malladus did _exactly_ what he wanted.

The beast stood over something – _someone_ – in engineer clothing, with a bag at their side and a quiver on their back, a glowing bow discarded next to it. Zelda looked down at herself and saw the patterns on the ground through her legs.

 _No_.

No, this wasn't happening, it couldn't!...

“Ah, the memory comes back, doesn't it?” Malladus asked, but he wasn't looking at her; he observed Ganondorf, who froze in shock, one arm extended towards the demon as if he had tried to stop him but was too late. “Why, where did your boldness go? Are you too shocked to move anymore? Then stay back and let our destinies be fulfilled, and who knows, I may not even absorb you when I'm done. Let me take this body, and obtain a power so grand nobody will be able to stop me.” He crouched over the body like he wanted to lie on it – inside it – but hesitated. He raised his monstrous head towards Zelda, pupils constricting into slits. “No,” he growled, “not yet... I will not make the same mistake again. I will devour the spirit of the Princess first.” Before she could react he crawled over the body and towards her, got low on his feet, opened his fanged maw wide – and jumped.

A loud clang reverbated.

Zelda opened her eyes. Inches from her face she could see complicated patterns meticulously knit out with orange thread on black material.

Ganondorf had jumped in front of her.

Furious Malladus stepped back holding a paw to his teeth that had met with twin swords. “What are you doing?” he growled. “Are you trying to fight me so you can take her body yourself?”

Ganondorf didn't humour him with an answer; instead he pointed at him with one of the swords in an obvious challenge.

Malladus snarled and lowered his head. “No... I see now. Your eyes... your eyes are the same as that foolish sage's apprentice.” His tail swished back and forth in anger. “You know you will never obtain what you're looking for. Your power burned out. Wouldn't you think it's high time to set flame to everything else?”

Ganondorf didn't move, and that seemed to upset Malladus even more. “Get out of my way!” he roared, creeping closer.

They clashed so suddenly Zelda flinched. Claws and teeth against steel, they fought close and brutally, Malladus crying out when a blade caught his paw, his opponent stumbling from a blow but recovering in time to deflect a swipe. Ganondorf's robes twirled black around him as he parried, being forced to gradually step back under the assault, but no, Zelda realized, it wasn't just the force of the blows that made him get closer to the other side of the tower. He was acking off on purpose. Trying to pull Malladus as far away from her – and her body - as it was possible.

Keeping silent so she hopefully wouldn't be noticed, Zelda sneaked back to where the Bow of Light lay discarded. She reached for it, but found she couldn't quite grasp it, her hands passing through. What now, she thought anxiously observing the clash in front of her. As a spirit she could probably interact with those two – but fighting Malladus physically was out of question, he would snap her in half like a twig...

Praying that the demon didn't suddenly break off the fight, Zelda crouched by the body (that she still refused to think of as hers, because she was looking at her own corpse and _oh Spirits_ ). She had to come back, but quickly discovered she had no idea how. She took a deep breath that she probably didn't need to take. It had to work if the focused enough. But completely focusing was out of question, not when the battle raged so close. Malladus moved lightning fast, all on offensive, and Ganondorf could only try to shield himself, no doubt running out of breath and energy to fight. As she watched, he almost got torn in half by the claws, jumping away at last moments.

One blow more was enough for Malladus to finally overpower his opponent and throw him to the ground, pinning both his arms down. Ganondorf struggled uselessly against the hold. Malladus roared with laughter. From where Zelda had crouched she could clearly see his tail swishing back and forth in amusement. The beast stopped laughing and leaned forward, ready to devour.

And Zelda discovered she refused to watch idly.

She shot forward, caught the swishing tail and pulled hard, causing Malladus to snap his head up in surprise. It was brash, it was foolish, it would take him only a second to recover – but a second happened to be just enough time for Ganondorf to get one arm free and slash at the beast's head.

Malladus howled in pain. He backed off from them both, one paw clutching at his forehead where the broken skin peeled off to reveal something shiny and red: a giant gem.

A weak spot.

Roaring in fury Malladus turned on Zelda, but with one paw occupied his stumble was slow. She ran back and jumped into her body with surprising ease – maybe because in that very moment her instincts jumpstarted, maybe because her focus was no longer being broken – then she caught the bow and whipping around she pulled out and drew the last arrow.

Malladus froze with his eyes glued to the golden light. When he snapped out of the shock, he let out a chuckle that didn't quite manage to hide fear. “An impressive trick, I must admit. But do you really think these arrows would bring me any harm, Princess? No one can ever defeat me! I am immortal!”

“Why don't you take your hand away so we can check that?” Zelda asked, noting with satisfaction that he flinched. “You don't have a body to shield you, Demon King. It's over.” She threw a quick glance towards Ganondorf. He wasn't in the best shape, trying and failing to stand up by bracing himself with one of the swords.

Too late she noticed that Malladus's eyes followed her sight, and that this time his grin was genuine. In one swift motion the beast turned around and ran straight towards Ganondorf. Without thinking Zelda gathered more light in the arrow, aimed--

“Don't!” Ganondorf shouted making her freeze. “You'll waste it if you shoot now! You--” A pained cry escaped him when Malladus shoved him down with his free paw.

“Stubborn, are you,” the beast growled. “Fine... I'm fine with that... try to oppose me... I don't need your permission to make you useful.”

Before Zelda could think of a distraction to get him away, the blue smoke making up Malladus's body glowed sickly. It dispersed into a swarm of particles that hovered over Ganondorf and then, in an instant, shot straight at him.

Zelda would hear the scream that followed in her nightmares.

Ganondorf stood up on shaking legs, blindly slashed the air a few times stumbling along his movements, but finally the strength left him and he fell on his knees, trembling. Zelda ran to him, but stopped in her path when he cried, “Don't come closer!”

“Where's Malladus? What's going on?!”

“He's trying to...” He gasped in pain, shook his head and started again. “We've been a part of the same powerful being once... he wants to recover all that power... to absorb my spirit. You can't let him succeed. You have to destroy him.” His eyes fell on the bow. “Quickly.”

Zelda felt ice deep inside her chest when she realized what he meant. “No,” she said. “No, no, no...”

“I'll hold him while I can... but please hurry.”

“No! I'm not going to shoot you, Ganondorf!” Her hand clenched painfully around the bow. “There has to be another way!”

“There's not,” he hissed through his teeth in pain. “It's the only way.”

“But you're going to...!”

“I know. Forgive me... for forcing your hand.”

Tears prickled the corners of her eyes. “You don't understand – don't you remember what Anjean said?! You're not going to just die, you will disappear forever!”

“Yes, I will!” he shouted looking her straight in the eye. “But it is finally my choice, _my choice only_ , and I have chosen!”

There was something – in these golden eyes, in these words – that made Zelda finally grit her teeth and nod. She forced her shaking hands to steady and her tear-distorted sight to not wander, aimed at the bright jewel and released the last light arrow.

Light burst out, so bright that closing her eyes didn't diminish it at all. White pressed against her with force that made her stumble back and finally tipped her over. A sound was piercing through the air around her, _through_ her - a long discordant scream – and soon the overwhelming white turned into black.

 

\- - -

 

“...da! Zelda! Please open your eyes, Zelda!”

Zelda groaned. Pain pulsed in her head, but she forced her eyes to open, squinting in the dawn. Over her leaned Ildefonzo, scared out of his wits. “Oh thank all the Spirits of Good,” he said. “Don't scare me like that.”

“What--” She coughed trying to sit up. “'Fonzo? How...”

“I'm so sorry I'm so late,” he babbled on, “I saw that flash of light, I got to the Tower as soon as that giant train fell down, and the stairs would take too long so I kinda sprung myself up here with the Wind Waker, all thirty stories up, please remind me to _never do that again,_ and – and I'm just so glad you're safe.” He hugged her tightly.

“'Fonzo, I...” she managed, still pretty hazy. “I thought you were dead... I couldn't see the Flying Hylian's lights...”

“Ran out of fuel. They were on the whole night, after all, and it's not like I had time to refill them. We could really use kerosene-effective ones. I could swear I already ordered a few from Linebeck, seriously, that guy sometimes- Zelda, are you crying? What's wrong?”

“Ganondorf,” she choked. “He's... he's dead.”

“...yes?”

She shook her head. “That's not what I- We, we fought Malladus, and I had to... he's gone, Ildefonzo. He's... gone.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? He's right there. Not in the best of shapes, I admit.”

Zelda's breath caught up in her throat. “What?” She disentangled herself from Ildefonzo, turned around and couldn't believe her eyes: in the middle of the tower lay a crumpled heap of familiar black and orange. Zelda jumped to her feet and ran as fast as she could on still weak legs, praying that please, _please_.

“Ganondorf!” She kneeled by him; his eyes were closed. She tried in vain to grab his arm and shake him. “Ganondorf, wake up! Just don't be, don't be... It's me, Zelda! Please!”

Ganondorf stirred and opened his eyes. “Zelda?” he croaked.

“Oh Spirits, you're alive!” she shouted. “You're ali... you're... less dead than you could be! You...”

But it was as if Ganondorf didn't hear her at all. Slowly, he rose to his feet, then without saying a word moved to the edge of the Tower, looking at the fields and the sea like he'd never seen them before.

“Well, isn't he weird.” Ildefonzo stood by Zelda's side, scratching his head. “And you didn't lie, the guy's huge. But I imagined him a little more monstrous.”

Zelda stared at him. “Wait – wait wait wait. 'Fonzo, _you can see him._ ”

“Yeah? I can now. Not sure what's up with that. It... doesn't mean anything bad, right?”

“No, my child.”

They turned in surprise and saw Anjean, who had appeared out of nowhere and was now regarding them with a long thoughtful look. “If I understand correctly... that ability is one of the remains of a great power long gone. It first manifested between Ganondorf and you, Zelda, but now is also known to Ildefonzo after what would be... his awakening, would the golden force of old still exist.” She sighed deeply. “Ah... I can sense that the evil one was finally destroyed. You have succeeded, Zelda.”

“Yeah.” She laughed nervously. “Oh Spirits, but I almost run out of arrows... and I wouldn't put something that stupid past myself...”

“And yet you had enough.” Anjean smiled. “How fortunate is it that we can remember the mistakes of the past. There wouldn't be any progress if not for them. Tell me, do you know the saying that accidents always come in sets of three? It is very true, and all three serve a purpose. The first one shows you a failure may happen, from the second one you learn, and when the third one comes upon... you triumph over it.” Her sparkling eyes focused on something far behind Zelda. “No matter how big the mistake.”

Zelda followed Anjean's sight. There, on the edge of the Tower, Ganondorf stood with his back turned to them, in silence facing the green fields of the Forest Realm and the oceans further away.

“Why is he still here?” Zelda wondered. “You said the Light Arrows would destroy any malevolent spirit.”

“Yes, Zelda.” Anjean smiled and blinked with one eye. “This is _exactly_ what I said.”

“Oh,” was all Zelda replied with. Suddenly she felt an urge to leave Anjean's side to come closer to Ganondorf, and followed it. Ildefonzo came along her.

Ganondorf didn't acknowledge their approach. His stare was focused on the phantom pictograph he was holding over the edge of the tower, on castles and fields long gone. His fingers briefly tightened their grip in the last act of desperation - but then they relaxed and let the pictograph fall.

It twirled down like a discarded leaf, down, down, and out of sight.

Ganondorf looked long at where it vanished. Then he turned around, his sight falling on Zelda, on Ildefonzo, on Zelda again. As she gazed upon her, his eyes glinted a sad light, like an old memory resurfaced. Zelda, who suspected what that memory could have been, couldn't stand that gaze and looked down. “I'm sorry you lost so much,” she whispered. “And thank you. We would never get here without you. You saved us both. You saved Hyrule.”

She caught a glance of the black and orange material of his sleeves moving towards her, as if Ganondorf was reaching to her with his arms, to catch her or maybe embrace her. Only after a few seconds of nervous anticipation she realized that it was only an illusion, that his arms did not move, that it was only his spacious sleeves picked up by the wind.

His clothes had never been affected by the wind before.

Zelda raised her sight. Ganondorf wasn't looking at them anymore. His unseeing stare was fixed somewhere far in front of him, as if trying to hear a melody coming from far away, or gazing into an entirely different world – entirely different time, perhaps. His mouth opened, but no words came out. Slowly, he turned away from them, to face the fields and the sea, and made a step, then another, until he stepped out of the edge of the tower – and even then he kept walking, now held only by thin air. The furious wind picked up his sleeves like dark wings.

 _No_ , Zelda thought struck by sudden anxiety. _No. I still have so many questions to ask you._

“Ganondorf!” she called more desperately than she intended.

Ganondorf stopped. He turned back to her, his eyes regaining a bit of focus. “Zelda,” he said.

And he smiled.

Closing his eyes, he raised his arms as if to bless her. A speck of light shone above his hands, turning bigger and brighter until it developed into a triangular golden shape of a Force Gem. He bestowed it into the air, and on what seemed like a breath of the wind it flown into Zelda's hands. It felt calm and warm, glinting in the sun.

She rose her head to see him already turned around. In silence he made a few steps more over the fields, against the wind, and disappeared into the bright morning.

The Force Gem in Zelda's hands shuddered. It shone with light so hot she could barely hold it anymore, and rose high into the sky; then it entirely transformed into light and shot down, sliding on the Tower's wall. Zelda leaned over the edge to see it snaking its way down to the Spirit Tracks, where it shot through them, leaving the rails in its path filled with light. In seconds the golden glow set ablaze the tracks of the entire Forest Realm and curved towards Aboda, but just before the village made a sharp turn south and ran over the sea itself, further and futher, until it reached the horizon.

It could have been a pure coincidence that it was this certain set of the Spirit Tracks that the Force Gem unveiled. But inside her heart Zelda felt and hoped that it held a meaning much deeper, that it was something meant for her, a sign of a new way, a track not yet discovered she would one day follow as her own; or maybe it was meant as a road for an entirely different person, for a long-lost sailor in search of his home across the seas.

Right now, standing on top of a windy tower with Ildefonzo by her side, she could only guess. The sun rose higher as they looked at the tracks leading into the very bright edge of the morning, reaching as far as the eye could see.

 

 

 

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you very much for reading!


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